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The Mechanism of Household Waste Sorting Behaviour—A Study of Jiaxing, China

Author

Listed:
  • Qiao Liu

    (College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China)

  • Qianhui Xu

    (College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China)

  • Xin Shen

    (College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China)

  • Bowei Chen

    (College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China)

  • Sonia Sadeghian Esfahani

    (ICT School, College of Science and Engineering, University of Tasmania, Hobart 7005, Australia)

Abstract

Economic growth and rapid urbanization have resulted in various urban issues related to sustainable development in emerging economies such as China. Nowadays, two-thirds of China’s cities are besieged by waste and one-fourth of the cities have no space to build landfills. China is embarking on a top-down waste sorting revolution, in which residents’ awareness and behaviour of participation are fundamental to the success of garbage classification. The purpose of this paper is to understand residents’ waste sorting behaviour and identify the influencing factors in China. The subjects of this study are urban and rural residents in Jiaxing, where local government has begun to encourage waste classification but has not yet legalized it. With the integration of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and value-belief-norm theory (NAM), this study represents a “motivation-intention-behaviour” theoretical model for the systemic illustration of the antecedents of household waste sorting behaviour. A total of 541 questionnaires were administered in person in households in Jiaxing, China. Structural equation modelling with partial least squares was applied to analyse empirically. The results show that attitudes (ATT), subjective norm (SN), and perceived behavioural control (PBC) have a significant positive effect on the intention of household waste sorting (WSI), and the perceived policy effectiveness (PPE) has a positive and significant effect on the attitudes and waste sorting intention. The waste sorting intention has a positive and significant effect on waste sorting behaviour (WSB). In addition, individual characteristics have a significant impact on waste sorting behaviour, where respondents of women, higher income, and middle and old age are more willing to implement waste sorting behaviours. This study theoretically contributes to the literature by improving the understanding of the determinants of household solid waste sorting behaviour. It also provides several recommendations to improve existing policies at the practitioner level. These recommendations can be valuable references for waste management in China and other emerging economies.

Suggested Citation

  • Qiao Liu & Qianhui Xu & Xin Shen & Bowei Chen & Sonia Sadeghian Esfahani, 2022. "The Mechanism of Household Waste Sorting Behaviour—A Study of Jiaxing, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(4), pages 1-12, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:4:p:2447-:d:754113
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Zhaoyun Yin & Jing Ma, 2022. "Rational Choice or Altruism Factor: Determinants of Residents’ Behavior toward Household Waste Separation in Xi’an, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-12, September.
    3. Jing, Huiyan & Cui, Yue & Ye, Meiying & Yan, Xusheng & Liu, Yanping, 2022. "Effect of zero-valent iron on acidification and methane production using food waste under different food-to-microorganism ratios," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 198(C), pages 131-143.
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    5. Jian Cao & Hongliang Qiu & Alastair M. Morrison & Wei Wei, 2022. "The Role of Social Capital in Predicting Tourists’ Waste Sorting Intentions in Rural Destinations: Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-20, October.
    6. Yongqi Liang & Jian Tang & Heng Xia & Loai Aljerf & Bingyin Gao & Mulugeta Legesse Akele, 2023. "Three-Dimensional Numerical Modeling and Analysis for the Municipal Solid-Waste Incineration of the Grate Furnace for Particulate-Matter Generation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-22, August.
    7. Wenjian Luo & Ziqin Yu & Panling Zhou & Yuanyuan Ren & Hua Lv, 2024. "Research on the Influencing Factors of Urban Community Residents’ Willingness to Segregate Waste Based on Structural Equation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-15, December.
    8. Wei Li & Si Chen & Zhihao Wang & Guomin Li & Xiaoguang Liu, 2022. "The Influence of Message Framing on Residents’ Waste Separation Willingness—The Mediating Role of Moral Identity," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-18, May.
    9. Nor Isnaeni Dwi Arista & Dwini Handayani & Ninin Ernawati, 2023. "Is It Possible to Implement the Same Circular-Economy Concept in Rural and Urban Areas? Study on Willingness to Pay for Household Waste," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-14, March.
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