Cited by 241Recycling and Waste Management TechniquesSustainable Supply Chain ManagementWaste Management and Recycling

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 160 of the 174 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 243 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.

A global review of consumer behavior towards e-waste and implications for the circular economy

Open access

Abstract

Abstract To tackle the alarming increase in e-waste or end-of-life (EoL) electronic products, consumer behavior towards the end of their useful life needs to be thoroughly studied. End users or consumers are the starting point where e-waste starts its journey into several paths within the circular economy (CE), such as repair, reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling. E-waste often ends up in landfill due to improper disposal of e-waste with household waste by consumers. Studying consumer behavior allows for the identification of appropriate approaches to achieve CE. Numerous academic journal papers have been published concerning consumers' e-waste-related knowledge and awareness, and behavior on consumption, disposal, storage, recycling, and repair. Substantial knowledge gap exists around how understandings of consumer behavior around e-waste may be integrated into the CE model. This article aims to reduce this gap by reviewing 109 research papers published in international peer-reviewed journals identified in the Web of Science (WoS) core collection database, using content analysis methodology to analyze and review the articles. The study aims to provide invaluable input for developing a more consumer-centric CE framework for both policymakers and researchers seeking to advance knowledge and implementation strategies around e-waste. This is one of the earliest systematic reviews of studies on consumer behavior around e-waste. The study results show that consumers' disposal and recycling behaviors are the two main areas of research interest in the studies reviewed. In contrast, reuse and repair behavior were investigated to a lesser extent. In this study, several research gaps and areas for future research are identified, along with suggestions for a CE framework focusing on the e-waste sector that, encompasses policy initiatives and business model innovations. The identified studies presented here offer a valuable starting point for researchers who are starting to work on consumer behavior-related e-waste research.

Overview

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.128297

Cites

160 of 160 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Nothing to recompute.

Verification

Claims the paper makes

193 Not checked yet · 40 No basis given · 18 Own result · 15 Own interpretation · 6 Own method

Verify all 243 references — free account

Show all 140 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 71
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 72
  • The quote only partly states this claim. 3
132 of 132
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    This is the first attempt at reviewing consumer awareness and behavior focused on e-waste, considering all the behavioral aspects.

    “To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first attempt at reviewing consumer awareness and behavior focused on e-waste, considering all the behavioral aspects.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The selected 109 articles are representative of global consumer behavior research on e-waste.

    “Finally, 109 articles were found that only focused only on consumers' behavior around e-waste.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The WoS core collection and the keyword search captured all relevant articles on consumer behavior around e-waste.

    “To collect relevant articles that focused only on consumer behavior around e-waste, an extensive search was performed in the Web of Science (WoS) core collection database using”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Indonesia is representative of developing countries for the phenomenon of unstable electrical voltage causing product malfunction.

    “It is a common phenomenon in developing countries.”
  • The authors state this as an assumption.

    Most consumers feel reluctant to dispose of e-waste through formal collection and recycling channels due to the considerable amount of time involved.

    “It is assumed that most consumers feel reluctant to dispose of e-waste through formal collection and recycling channels due to the considerable amount of time involved.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The growing secondhand product market is evident worldwide, primarily involving online product selling platforms such as eBay and Gumtree in Australia.

    “The growing secondhand product market is evident worldwide, primarily involving online product selling platforms such as eBay and Gumtree (in Australia).”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Cheaper products tend to have shorter lifespans.

    “As cheaper products tend to have shorter lifespans, product design characteristics need to be investigated further.”
7 of 7

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

2 of 2

Citations

Cites

Show all 174 references

Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Directive, 2012, Directive 2012/19/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on waste electrical and electronic equipment, WEEE, Off. J. European Union, 197, 38
  2. MacArthur, 2013, Towards the circular economy, J. Ind. Ecol., 2, 23
  3. Parajuly, 2020, Behavioral change for the circular economy: a review with focus on electronic waste management in the EU. Resources, Conserv. Recycl. X, 6, 100035

Cited by

Sorted by citations

See all 241

Metadata

Authors
Islam, M. T., Huda, N., Baumber, A., Shumon, R., Zaman, A., Ali, F., Hossain, R., & Sahajwalla, V.
Affiliations
  • UNSW Sydney (AU)
  • Macquarie University (AU)
  • University of Technology Sydney (AU)
  • RMIT University (AU)
  • Curtin University (AU)
  • The University of Sydney (AU)
Corresponding author
  • Islam, Md Tasbirul
  • Huda, Nazmul
Venue
Journal of Cleaner Production
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2021-09
Volume
316
Pages
128297
ISSN
0959-6526 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3178329719
Cited by
241
References
174
Citations by year
2026: 39 · 2025: 57 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 47 · 2022: 31 · 2021: 1
FWCI
21.79
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Cleaner Production (publishedVersion)
  • RMIT Research Repository (RMIT University Library) (acceptedVersion)
  • Figshare (acceptedVersion)
  • eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
Funders
Macquarie University
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Recycling and Waste Management Techniques
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Strategy and Management › Sustainable Supply Chain Management
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Waste Management and Recycling
Keywords
electronic waste, consumer behavior, circular economy, e-waste recycling, e-waste disposal, reuse, repair, remanufacturing, consumer awareness, business model innovation, e-waste policy

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