The economy of E-waste collection at the individual level: a practice oriented approach of categorizing determinants of E-waste collection into behavioral costs and motivation
Open accessAbstract
In order to foster e-waste recycling, it is necessary to identify the factors that affect consumers' recycling of e-waste and to determine the degree to which these factors influence recycling behavior. We propose that environmental motivation and behavioral costs are the two determinants of e-waste recycling, but only behavioral costs can be manipulated effectively in the short term. We conducted two field trails and tested the effects of direct approaches (i.e., structural improvements such as curbside collection and deposit containers) and indirect approaches (i.e., material and social enticements) that were designed to reduce behavioral costs. Results showed that the direct approach led to more than a 14-fold increase in e-waste recycling compared to the control condition. This effect increased even further in the second field trial in which behavioral costs were indirectly decreased through a combination of social enticements that addressed social norms, group identity, and social commitment. These findings show that expensive structural improvements (e.g., setting up deposit containers for e-waste) can be outperformed by e-waste collection campaigns that address social motives.
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A global review of consumer behavior towards e-waste and implications for the circular economy
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- Authors
- Otto, S., Kibbe, A., Henn, L., Hentschke, L., & Kaiser, F. G.
- Affiliations
- University of Hohenheim (DE)
- Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Otto, Siegmar
- Venue
- Journal of Cleaner Production
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2018-12
- Volume
- 204
- Pages
- 33-40
- ISSN
- 0959-6526 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2891539918
- Cited by
- 77
- References
- 48
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 9
- FWCI
- 7.81
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Cleaner Production (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Funders
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (03PSZZF2C, 03ZZF82B)
- 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 › Municipal Solid Waste Management
- Keywords
- e-waste recycling, behavioral costs, environmental motivation, curbside collection, social norms, group identity, social commitment, field trials
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