Linking self‐determined needs and word of mouth to consumer e‐waste disposal behaviour: A test of basic psychological needs theory
Abstract
E‐waste is recognized as the fastest growing waste stream in the world. It contains toxic substances such as heavy metals and flame retardants that are hazardous to human and ecological health. Despite these environmental and health hazards, the vast majority of consumers are reluctant to dispose of e‐waste and prefer to store obsolete products at home instead of returning them to manufacturers for recycling. To address this alarming problem, we use the basic psychological needs theory (BPNT) and word of mouth (WOM) to profile consumer behaviour changes and explain self‐reported consumer e‐waste disposal behaviours. Based on longitudinal survey data collected over two rounds from Pakistan, the findings support the role of BPNT. Particularly, the results show that positive WOM messages about e‐waste disposal significantly improve consumers' self‐determined needs that, in turn, fuel consumers' integrated motivation for e‐waste and subsequent e‐waste disposal behaviours. The implications of these findings for practitioners regarding consumer behavioural changes are discussed in‐depth.
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WOM significantly impacted consumers' e-waste disposal behavior and motivated acting to recycle appropriately.
“Gilal et al. (2019) mentioned that WOM significantly impacted consumers' e-waste disposal behavior, which also motivated acting to recycle appropriately.”
From A global review of consumer behavior towards e-waste and implications for the circular economy (2021) · cites this paper as Gilal et al. (2019)
Cites
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A global review of consumer behavior towards e-waste and implications for the circular economy
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What drives individuals to dispose of waste mobile phones? A case study in Indonesia
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- Authors
- Gilal, F. G., Zhang, J., Gilal, N. G., & Gilal, R. G.
- Affiliations
- Sukkur IBA University (PK)
- University of Science and Technology Beijing (CN)
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Zhang, Jian
- Venue
- Journal of Consumer Behaviour
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2018-11-29
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 12-24
- ISSN
- 1472-0817 (ISSN-L)
- 1479-1838
- OpenAlex
- W2903188580
- Cited by
- 70
- References
- 6
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 18 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 5.05
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Consumer Behaviour (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (71771022)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Recycling and Waste Management Techniques
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Environmental Education and Sustainability
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Waste Management and Recycling
- Keywords
- e-waste disposal, word of mouth, basic psychological needs theory, self-determination theory, consumer behavior, e-waste recycling, integrated motivation, consumer behavior change
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