Horticultural production is often capital intensive and generates high economic value, creating strong potential for the use of digital technologies (DTs). However, their adoption remains constrained by a wide range of determinants. Existing studies have examined DT adoption in horticulture from different perspectives and theoretical frameworks, but the evidence remains fragmented. This systematic review synthesizes current knowledge on DT adoption by distinguishing three adoption constructs: willingness to adopt (WTA), behavioral intention (BI), and usage behavior (UB). Following PRISMA guidelines, 129 empirical studies were included in the systematic review, of which 54 contributed data to the meta-analysis. The qualitative synthesis shows that studies of BI mainly focus on psychological and social determinants, whereas studies of UB more often examine technical, knowledge, social, infrastructure, and institutional determinants. Evidence on WTA remains comparatively limited. The meta-analysis shows that age, social influence, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use are significantly associated with BI. For UB, significant positive associations were found for sex, education level, training participation, planting area, farming income, household income, organization or cooperative membership, risk attitude, social network, and social influence. Subgroup analyses further showed that some associations with UB varied across geographic regions, crop systems, and DT types. The findings show that the relevance of adoption determinants differs across WTA, BI, and UB and varies across horticultural contexts. This study provides a more differentiated understanding of DT adoption in horticulture and offers evidence for developing more targeted policy, technical, and institutional support.

The Dutch horticultural supply chain is characterised by substantial uncertainty resulting from ongoing organisational changes, such as the transformation from an auction-cooperative system to a sales organisation-based structure. This uncertainty causes strategic behaviour among all supply-chain members (including producers), which often disadvantages primary producers. This study investigates how uncertainty shapes trading behaviour and decision-making using Transaction Cost Theory as a theoretical framework. Specifically, it examines the relationship between environmental and behavioural uncertainty, trading behaviour and strategic responses. Employing a multimethod approach involving interviews, simulation sessions and debriefings to collect data, this study integrates a qualitative and quantitative analysis. The findings reveal: (1) how uncertainty influences trader behaviour and strategic decision-making, and demonstrates the need for more effective coordination mechanisms and strategies to reduce opportunism and inefficiencies in horticultural trade, (2) the diversity of strategic responses to uncertainty and (3) the factors that influence uncertainty and their relationship. These factors, include the current supply-chain structure that upholds uncertainty and strategic behaviour such as the deliberate exploitation of the absence or lack of information (asymmetric information). By combining methodological triangulation with theoretical insight, this study provides a foundational understanding of strategic behaviour under uncertainty in agri-food supply chains.

Simplifications of the real world affect the validity and reliability of gaming simulations. This challenges the application of gaming simulations as an instrument for experiential learning, reflective practices and data collection. This study investigates the effects of simplification on extracting tacit knowledge from human behavior by answering the research question: Can tacit knowledge in a simplified design of a gaming simulation be transferred without compromising the validity and reliability corresponding to the real-world complexity? By applying a participatory design a gaming simulation is tested as an instrument to extract tacit knowledge. To test and evaluate the validity of this application, simulation sessions have been performed with experts from the field. In simplifying reality, participants' participation emphasized that the most accurate representation of reality is a prerequisite for capturing tacit knowledge. This in turn contributes again to the validity of the simulation design. The results show that simplification of the real world didn't affect participants' perspective on the use of the gaming simulation as an experiential tool to enable learning processes or create awareness. And that a simplified simulation design, is still valid in addressing the real-world complexity, with minimization of the level of abstraction and maximization of the truthfulness.

Background. Revealing tacit knowledge often is seen as very valuable for organizations, although it is usually challenging to enunciate and share this type of knowledge. Methods. This study uses a participatory design and the application of a board gaming simulation as instruments to extract tacit knowledge. To illustrate this application, the gaming simulation is played with entrepreneurs from horticulture. Horticulture represents a complex social system where tacit knowledge plays a major role in the trade process. A participatory design process is used to explore whether the design and play of gaming simulations enable participants to explicate their tacit knowledge. Participants’ participation in designing the gaming simulation explicated that reconstructing reality was a prerequisite for their commitment. Results. The results from playing simulation sessions show that participants were able to: (1) narrow down the anecdotic behaviour to a few factors; (2) to structure these factors; (3) explore how these factors relate to trade barriers and (4) to explain which tactics are applied to foster trade. Conclusion. The educational value of this study is that it helped entrepreneurs in understanding complex real-life situations.