On the 29th of September 2023, the Ph.D. candidate Ligia Maria Andrei defended her doctoral thesis entitled Visual communication and sustainability in the decision-making process. Analyzing the perception of packaging design as an element of strategic communication. The thesis was defended within the Doctoral School of Communication, Public Relations, and Advertising at the Faculty of Political, Administrative, and Communication Sciences. The supervisor of the thesis was Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ioana Iancu.

In a context of a society oversaturated with the multitude of messages, products, and brands, the visual communication transposed to the packaging and packaging design becomes a paramount topic. Furthermore, as the environmental issues are increasingly acute, the need to create nature friendly packages and to educate consumers in this respect are of great importance.

The thesis investigates the way consumers and specialists perceive the role of the design’s visual communication within the decision-making process. Likewise, the packaging sustainability idea is highlighted. The sample of the research is formed both on the consumers and on the communication experts. Thus, based on the perspectives provided by the literature, the consumers’ gender differences are considered. Regarding the specialists, the distinct perceptions of academics and practitioners are investigated. The research methods used are the focus-group and the interview.

The focus-group’s results show that the products wrapped in a visually minimalist package are perceived as being testier. Moreover, there is a clear tendency of women to be more attracted by such packaging. They associate it with more positive features, in comparison with men. Regarding sustainability, the recycling idea appears constantly. However, respondents declare that they are rarely willing to pay extra money for sustainable packaging.

Regarding the interview with the communication specialists, the data show that the academics, in comparison with the practitioners, associate the packaging design with sustainability and care for nature more straightforward. They refer to elements such as color and content information. They also stress the need to adapt the design and the communication strategies to the target group. The practitioners emphasize the importance of individualization and the ease of packaging use. They claim the need for a product to visually stand out and to provide an extraordinary experience to the consumer. The use of sustainable materials is needed, but the communication process in this respect should be clear and meaningful. Regardless of their expertise, the specialists consider they are prepared to test and use eco-friendly initiatives through creative and innovative perspectives.