A systematic literature review of sensory-related sustainable product design

Despite the tremendous social development and economic prosperity brought about by technological progress, the environment of our planet is gradually deteriorating. In this context, the peaceful rise of green product consumption offers a practical solution. Consumers are becoming more aware of environmental issues. Among sustainable product studies, we can find that sensory design can impact consumers’ consumption decisions. In this study, we use COOC 13.4 and VOSviewer to map and explore research on sustainable products related to sensory science and consumers. We collected 779 papers as data between 2017 and 2022 from Web of Science, Engineering Village, and Scopus. After literature filtering, the existing studies were divided into four main categories: studies on sustainable design considering visuals with consumption, design studies related to health sustainability, sensory-related sustainable products considering consumer experience design, and design research on fuzzy mathematical methods. In addition, we summarize three elements that represent current research hotspots: the role of the consumer, the focus on sensory-related sustainable design, and the impact of sensory science on sustainable products. Finally, recommendations are offered to inform and enhance this field for future researchers.