IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v16y2024i22p9969-d1521680.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Citizens’ Attitudes and Practices Towards Waste Reduction, Separation, and Recycling: A Systematic Review

Author

Listed:
  • Anna Konstantinidou

    (Department of Forestry and Management of the Environment and Natural Resources, Democritus University of Thrace, Pantazidou 193, 68200 Orestiada, Greece)

  • Konstantinos Ioannou

    (Forest Research Institute, Hellenic Agricultural Organization Demeter, Vasilika, 57006 Thessaloniki, Greece)

  • Georgios Tsantopoulos

    (Department of Forestry and Management of the Environment and Natural Resources, Democritus University of Thrace, Pantazidou 193, 68200 Orestiada, Greece)

  • Garyfallos Arabatzis

    (Department of Forestry and Management of the Environment and Natural Resources, Democritus University of Thrace, Pantazidou 193, 68200 Orestiada, Greece)

Abstract

The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the attitudes and practices adopted by citizens in waste reduction, separation, and recycling, taking into consideration specific socio-demographic factors such as gender, age, income level, and level of education that might have an influence on these practices. The study was based on an extensive review of published articles found in Scopus. In total 27 articles were selected for analysis after filtering and evaluation based on a series of predefined criteria set for the present review, such as time period, geographical coverage, and thematic relevance. Many studies have shown that women, compared to men, in addition to being more aware, adopted more frequently recycling practices. Furthermore, age emerged as a very important factor, as younger citizens were more actively involved and at the same time more willing to recycle waste compared to older citizens. Additionally, education level proved to be a decisive factor, as citizens with higher educational levels possessed greater knowledge regarding recycling and, at the same time, had more environmentally conscious awareness about environmental problems. This resulted in citizens being more involved in various recycling practices. Finally, income proved to be an equally important factor in both shaping recycling attitudes and practices. It turned out that people who received higher incomes had more opportunities and resources for participating in pro-environmental activities. However, some studies have shown opposite results where the effect of income on waste separation practices was either not statistically significant or negative. Finally, from the research, it was clear that there is a need to incorporate environmental issues into educational programs and information campaigns. All these should be tailored to the needs of the socio-demographic groups targeted and at the same time be concerned with promoting best recycling practices as well as waste reduction.

Suggested Citation

  • Anna Konstantinidou & Konstantinos Ioannou & Georgios Tsantopoulos & Garyfallos Arabatzis, 2024. "Citizens’ Attitudes and Practices Towards Waste Reduction, Separation, and Recycling: A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-36, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:22:p:9969-:d:1521680
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/22/9969/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/22/9969/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tan Loi Huynh & Thi Kim Oanh Le & Yong Jie Wong & Chi Tuong Phan & Thi Long Trinh, 2023. "Towards Sustainable Composting of Source-Separated Biodegradable Municipal Solid Waste—Insights from Long An Province, Vietnam," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-15, September.
    2. Yerbol Sarbassov & Tolkyn Sagalova & Obid Tursunov & Christos Venetis & Stefanos Xenarios & Vassilis Inglezakis, 2019. "Survey on Household Solid Waste Sorting at Source in Developing Economies: A Case Study of Nur-Sultan City in Kazakhstan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-17, November.
    3. Decai Tang & Lei Shi & Xiaojuan Huang & Ziqian Zhao & Biao Zhou & Brandon J. Bethel, 2022. "Influencing Factors on the Household-Waste-Classification Behavior of Urban Residents: A Case Study in Shanghai," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-16, May.
    4. Mengge Hao & Dongyong Zhang & Stephen Morse, 2020. "Waste Separation Behaviour of College Students under a Mandatory Policy in China: A Case Study of Zhengzhou City," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-20, November.
    5. Yousif Mohammed Elmosaad & Ahmed M. Al Rajeh & Maria Blesilda B. Llaguno & Sami Saad Alqaimi & Ali Mohammed Alsalman & Ali Yousif Alkishi & Hassan Hussain & Mohammed Ahmed Alhoudaib & Othman Saad Alna, 2023. "Self-Reported Household Waste Recycling and Segregation Practices among Families in Eastern Region of Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-16, January.
    6. Kapil Dev Sharma & Siddharth Jain, 2020. "Municipal solid waste generation, composition, and management: the global scenario," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 16(6), pages 917-948, June.
    7. Navarro Ferronato & Vincenzo Torretta, 2019. "Waste Mismanagement in Developing Countries: A Review of Global Issues," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-28, March.
    8. S. Satriani & Izana Saffana Ilma & D. Daniel, 2022. "Trends of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Research in Indonesia: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-12, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kawther Saeedi & Anna Visvizi & Dimah Alahmadi & Amal Babour, 2023. "Smart Cities and Households’ Recyclable Waste Management: The Case of Jeddah," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-23, April.
    2. Emrah Kocak & Hayriye Hilal Baglitas, 2022. "The path to sustainable municipal solid waste management: Do human development, energy efficiency, and income inequality matter?," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(6), pages 1947-1962, December.
    3. Kumar, Aman & Singh, Ekta & Mishra, Rahul & Lo, Shang Lien & Kumar, Sunil, 2023. "Global trends in municipal solid waste treatment technologies through the lens of sustainable energy development opportunity," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).
    4. Abdul-Wahab Tahiru & Samuel Jerry Cobbina & Wilhemina Asare, 2024. "A Circular Economy Approach to Addressing Waste Management Challenges in Tamale’s Waste Management System," World, MDPI, vol. 5(3), pages 1-24, August.
    5. Sabah Mariyam & Logan Cochrane & Shifa Zuhara & Gordon McKay, 2022. "Waste Management in Qatar: A Systematic Literature Review and Recommendations for System Strengthening," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-23, July.
    6. Ferdoush, Md. Ruhul & Aziz, Ridwan Al & Karmaker, Chitra Lekha & Debnath, Binoy & Limon, Mohammad Hossain & Bari, A.B.M. Mainul, 2024. "Unraveling the challenges of waste-to-energy transition in emerging economies: Implications for sustainability," Innovation and Green Development, Elsevier, vol. 3(2).
    7. Thakur, Disha & Kumar, Sanjay & Kumar, Vineet & Kaur, Tarlochan, 2024. "Estimation of calorific value using an artificial neural network based on stochastic ultimate analysis," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 228(C).
    8. Sławomir Kasiński & Marcin Dębowski, 2024. "Municipal Solid Waste as a Renewable Energy Source: Advances in Thermochemical Conversion Technologies and Environmental Impacts," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-33, September.
    9. Dongxu Qu & Tetiana Shevchenko & Zahra Shams Esfandabadi & Meisam Ranjbari, 2023. "College Students’ Attitude towards Waste Separation and Recovery on Campus," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-17, January.
    10. Felicien Sebahire & Faridullah Faridullah & Muhammad Irshad & Aziz Ur Rahim Bacha & Farhan Hafeez & Jean Nduwamungu, 2024. "Effect of Biochar on Composting of Cow Manure and Kitchen Waste," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-14, September.
    11. Chi Ho Li & Tsz Ting Lee & Stephen Siu Yu Lau, 2023. "Enhancement of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Hong Kong through Innovative Solutions: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-15, February.
    12. Igor Donskoy, 2023. "Particle Agglomeration of Biomass and Plastic Waste during Their Thermochemical Fixed-Bed Conversion," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-25, June.
    13. Lynda Andeobu & Santoso Wibowo & Srimannarayana Grandhi, 2023. "Environmental and Health Consequences of E-Waste Dumping and Recycling Carried out by Selected Countries in Asia and Latin America," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-28, July.
    14. Xiaotong Pan & Jian Tang & Heng Xia & Tianzheng Wang, 2023. "Online Combustion Status Recognition of Municipal Solid Waste Incineration Process Using DFC Based on Convolutional Multi-Layer Feature Fusion," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(23), pages 1-26, November.
    15. 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.
    16. Botakoz Suleimenova & Berik Aimbetov & Daulet Zhakupov & Dhawal Shah & Yerbol Sarbassov, 2022. "Co-Firing of Refuse-Derived Fuel with Ekibastuz Coal in a Bubbling Fluidized Bed Reactor: Analysis of Emissions and Ash Characteristics," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-11, August.
    17. Leslier Valenzuela-Fernández & Manuel Escobar-Farfán, 2022. "Zero-Waste Management and Sustainable Consumption: A Comprehensive Bibliometric Mapping Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-24, December.
    18. Zulfiya E. Bayazitova & Javier Rodrigo-Ilarri & María-Elena Rodrigo-Clavero & Aigul S. Kurmanbayeva & Natalya M. Safronova & Anargul S. Belgibayeva & Sayagul B. Zhaparova & Gulim E. Baikenova & Anuarb, 2022. "Relevance of Environmental Surveys on the Design of a New Municipal Waste Management System on the City of Kokshetau (Kazakhstan)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-15, November.
    19. Asif Iqbal & Abdullah Yasar & Abdul-Sattar Nizami & Rafia Haider & Faiza Sharif & Imran Ali Sultan & Amtul Bari Tabinda & Aman Anwer Kedwaii & Muhammad Murtaza Chaudhary, 2022. "Municipal Solid Waste Collection and Haulage Modeling Design for Lahore, Pakistan: Transition toward Sustainability and Circular Economy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-39, December.
    20. Giovanni Vinti & Valerie Bauza & Thomas Clasen & Kate Medlicott & Terry Tudor & Christian Zurbrügg & Mentore Vaccari, 2021. "Municipal Solid Waste Management and Adverse Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-26, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:22:p:9969-:d:1521680. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.