Attitudes and Behaviours in Reducing Plastic Wastes

Literature Review 1
LITERATURE REVIEW
Name
Course
Professor
University
City/state
Date

Literature Review 2
Literature Review: The Effectiveness of a Change in Consumers’ Attitudes and Behaviours
in Reducing Plastic Wastes
Introduction
Plastic waste and pollution is a major environmental, economic and social problem
globally. Between 1950 and 2015, the world generated about 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste
(Geyer, et al., 2017). Out of this, about 12% has been incinerated, 9% recycled and the remaining
79% either released straight into the natural environment or deposited in landfills (Rhodes,
2018). Australia is one of the world’s top waste producers. It is estimated that the country has
cumulatively produced about 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic out of which only 9% (0.567 billion
tonnes) has been recycled while the remaining 91% (5.733 billion tonnes) is deposited in
landfills, has been burned or is floating in oceans, seas, lakes and rivers (Vo, 2019). About 6.9
billion plastic bags are used in Australia every year, 36,700 tonnes of plastic bags are dumped
into Australian landfills annually, and the Australian government spends more than $4 million
every year in cleaning up plastic bag litter (Ocean Crusaders, 2019). The country’s plastics
recycling rate in 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 was 10.8%, 11.3% and 11.8% respectively
(O'Farrell, 2018). The plastic waste is expected to continue increasing in the country unless
drastic measures are taken to reduce the same.
There are different strategies that can be used to minimize plastic waste and pollution.
Some of the most fundamental strategies include: educating people so that they can change their
attitude and behaviour towards use of plastics; encouraging people to avoid single-use plastics
and start carrying reusable bags; improving manufacture and supply of biodegradable bags to
replace plastic bags (North & Halden, 2014); formulating policies that ban production of single
use plastics, discourage irresponsible disposal of plastic waste and boost plastic recycling

Literature Review 3
(Environment and Communications References Committee, 2018). For example, a ban on single
use plastic bags by two largest supermarkets in Australia (Coles and Woolworth) in July 2018
saw an 80% decrease in consumption of plastic bags countrywide within three months (ABC
News, 2018). As expected, the ban was met with an instant public criticism but turned out to be
an effective strategy of reducing plastic waste. This paper presents a comprehensive literature
review that is aimed at gaining an understanding of published knowledge and thought on how
attitudes and behaviour related to single-use plastic products can help in solving the problem of
plastic waste and pollution. A change in attitude and behaviour can help to reduce, reuse and
recycle plastics thus reducing the plastic challenge (Greenpeace, 2017).
Scope and Questions
The literature review comprises of peer-reviewed journal articles or authoritative research
reports. The main questions that researchers have investigated in relation to the subject topic
include: are consumers environmentally conscious in relation to plastic products usage? Are
educational and campaign programs effective strategies in reducing plastic wastes? \and can a
change in consumers’ attitudes and behaviour help reduce plastic wastes?
Education and awareness
According to a study carried out by Bendak & Attili (2017), people’s attitude, behaviour
and practices have a significant impact on domestic waste recycling. The researchers used
questionnaires to investigate the attitude and behaviour of consumers towards the success of
domestic waste recycling programs in the UAE. They found that there is need to consider
publicity, education and promotion so as to make consumers develop positive attitude towards
waste recycling and to understand the impact of their behaviours on waste production. The study

Literature Review 4
also revealed that having a positive attitude towards recycling and not changing behaviour
towards it does not help to minimize waste. This study shows that consumers must have positive
perceptions towards recycling and translate it into a positive recycling behaviour. Similar
findings were obtained from a study by Wilis, et al. (2018), which concluded that investing in
outreach campaigns that change waste disposal attitudes and behaviours among people is more
effective in reducing plastic waste than investing in policies.
As postulated by Heidbreder, et al. (2019), plastic pollution remains a major global
problem. Some of the aspects the researchers investigated in their study are the impact of
consumers’ preferences and usage behaviour on the success of reducing plastic waste. One of the
key findings from the 187 studies reviewed is that plastic waste can be significantly reduced
through behaviour-based solutions. The findings show that there is need to develop a culture of
plastic reduction among Australian consumers so as to successfully solve plastic problem in the
country. This can be achieved through educational and awareness campaigns of problems
associated with plastic waste and how to reduce it.
Chow, et al. (2017) stated that some of the factors causing a radical increase in plastic
wastes globally are economic development and changing consumption patterns of people. They
hypothesized that education is of paramount importance in reducing plastic wastes because it can
change the attitude, knowledge and behaviour of people toward management of plastic waste.
This hypothesis was proved by performing a study to examine the effectiveness of different
teaching approaches (hands-on, direct teaching and simulation game-based approaches) in Japan,
Hong Kong, the UK and Taiwan. They found that education improved students’ knowledge,
attitude and behaviour of reduce, reuse and recycle plastic products, which helps in solving
plastic waste problem. These results coincided with those of different studies by Cheang, et al.

Literature Review 5
(2019) and (So, et al., 2016), which suggested that plastic recycling education significantly
improves pupils’ pro-environmental knowledge, behaviours and attitudes. In this study, the
researchers performed a quasi-experimental study and collected data using questionnaires and
interviews. The findings showed that developing new beliefs and behaviour about plastic use and
recycling among students helps to reduce plastic wastes in schools. Therefore educational and
awareness programs help to enhance people’s knowledge, attitudes and behaviours that are
related to use of plastic products and recycling of plastic waste.
Environmental consciousness
Ari & Yilmaz (2017) conducted an empirical study in order to investigate consumer
attitudes and behaviour regarding use of cloth and plastic bags in Eskisehir, Turkey. They
proposed a structural equation model and applied various latent variables. The study concluded
that environmentally conscious consumers and those who feel that are under social pressure have
the tendency of reducing use of plastic bags and substituting them with cloth bags. Similar
findings were recapped in a field study by Ohtomo & Ohnuma (2014) that sought to examine the
effect of minimizing plastic bags usage in Japanese supermarkets. The researchers used a dual
motivation model with intervention to conduct the study. Unintentional usage of plastic bags was
discouraged and intentional reduction of plastic usage was encouraged. It was revealed from the
study that interventions improved consumers’ pro-environmental behaviours, which reduced
usage of plastic bags. Findings from these studies show that behavioral change, intention and
willingness play a key role in reducing plastic usage among consumers.
Begum, et al. (2009) conducted a study to determine contractor attitude and behavioral
factors that are related with waste management in Malaysian construction industry. Data in this
study was collected by interviewing local contractors using a structured questionnaire survey and

Literature Review 6
analyzed by logistic regression analysis. The results showed that significant factors that affect
attitudes and behaviours of contractors towards waste management include: size and experience
of the contractor, source reduction, measures of material and waste reuse and recycling, waste
collection frequency, and waste reduction training. The study is significant to the current study
because it shows that contractors or consumers with positive attitudes also have satisfactory
behaviours towards waste management. In other words, optimizing the factors that help
consumers to develop positive attitude and behaviours towards waste management is essential in
solving the plastic waste problem in Australia.
Attitude-behaviour gap
A study by Muhlthaler & Rademacher (2017) revealed that there is a gap existing
between attitudes of consumers towards sustainability and consumers’ unsustainable behaviour,
known as attitude-behaviour gap. The study concluded that consumers should gain knowledge
about the impacts of their consumption patterns and become socially responsible so as to change
their attitude and behaviours in order to help solve environmental problems associated with
consumption of non-biodegradable products such as plastics. This study further emphasizes the
correlation between consumer attitudes and behaviours towards dealing with the plastic problem
and the need to educate people about being environmentally conscious.
Conclusion
The attitudes and behaviours of plastic products users are crucial factors towards
improving efforts aimed at solving plastic wastes problem. Several studies have shown that
creating awareness among people about environmental, economic and health impacts of plastic
products can help change their attitudes and behaviours towards usage and management of

Literature Review 7
plastic products and wastes respectively. Therefore the key concepts in this literature review will
be used to examine the strategies and effectiveness of changing consumers’ attitudes and
behaviours towards use of usage of single-use plastic products and plastic waste management.

Literature Review 8
Synthesis Matrix
Bendak & Attilli,
2017
Wilis, et al., 2018
Heidbreder, et al.,
2019
Chow, et al., 2017
Cheang, et al., 2019
So, et al., 2016
Ari & Yilmaz, 2017
Ohtomo &
Ohnuma, 2014
Begum, et al., 2009
Muhlthaler &
Rademacher, 2017
Education
and
awareness
Consum
ers’
attitude
s,
knowled
ge, and
practice
s
Publicity
,
educati
on and
promoti
on
Positive
attitude
towards
recyclin
g
plastics
Outreach
campaig
ns
Attitudes
and
behaviou
rs
towards
plastic
waste
disposal
Consum
er
prefere
nces
Usage
behavio
urs
Behavio
ur-
based
solution
s
Change
in
plastic
use and
waste
disposal
culture
Educati
on key
in
changin
g plastic
waste
percepti
ons
Pro-
environ
mental
knowled
ge,
beliefs
Pro-
environ
mental
behavio
urs
Environme
ntal
consciousn
ess
Promot
e
environ
mental
conscio
usness
Intentio
nal and
uninten
tional
usage
Attitude
and
behaviou
ral
factors
Waste
manage
ment
Attitude-
behaviour
gap
Existing
gap
between
sustainab
ility and
unsustain
able
behaviou
rs

Literature Review 9
References
ABC News, 2018. Supermarket ban sees 80pc drop in plastic bag consumption nationwide, retail
association says. [Online]
Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-12-03/supermarket-ban-sees-80pc-drop-in-plastic-
bags-nationwide/10576554
[Accessed 19 August 2019].
Ari, E. & Yilmaz, V., 2017. Consumer attitudes on the use of plastic and cloth bags. Environment
Development and Sustainability, 19(4), pp. 1219-1234.
Begum, R., Siwar, C., Pereira, J. & Jaafar, A., 2009. Attitude and behavioral factors in waste management
in the construction industry of Malaysia. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 53(6), pp. 321-328.
Bendak, S. & Attili, A., 2017. Consumers Attitude and Behavior Towards Domestic Waste Recycling in
Developing Countries: A Case Study. Advances in Recycling & Waste Management, 2(124), pp. 1-12.
Cheang, C., Cheung, T., So, W. & Cheng, I., 2019. Enhancing pupils’ pro-environmental knowledge,
attitudes and behaviors on plastic recycling education: a quasi-experimental study in primary schools. In:
W. So, C. Chow & J. Lee, eds. Environmental Sustainability and Education for Waste Management.
Singapore: Springer, pp. 159-188.
Chow, C., So, W., Cheung, T. & Yeung, S., 2017. Plastic Waste Problem and Education for Plastic Waste
Management. In: S. Kong, T. Wong, M. Yang & C. Chow, eds. Emerging practices in scholarship of
learning and teaching in a digital era. Singapore: Springer, pp. 125-140.
Environment and Communications References Committee, 2018. Never waste a crisis: the waste and
recycling industry in Australia, Canberra: Senate Printing Unit.
Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. & Law, K., 2017. Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Science
Advances, 3(7), pp. 1-8.
Greenpeace, 2017. Australia’s Plastic Problem: What, why & how?. [Online]
Available at: https://www.greenpeace.org.au/blog/australias-plastic-problem/
[Accessed 19 August 2019].
Heidbreder, L., Bablok, I., Drews, S. & Menzel, C., 2019. Tackling the plastic problem: A review on
perceptions, behaviors, and interventions. Science of The Total Environment, 668(1), pp. 1077-1093.
Muhlthaler, T. & Rademacher, L., 2017. The empowered consumer: Investigating the attitude-behaviour
gap phenomenon in the avoidance of plastic waste. Sustainability Management Forum, 25(3), pp. 1-8.
North, E. & Halden, R., 2014. Plastics and Environmental Health: The Road Ahead. Reviews on
Environmental Health, 28(1), pp. 1-8.
Ocean Crusaders, 2019. Plastic Ain't So Fantastic. [Online]
Available at: http://oceancrusaders.org/plastic-crusades/plastic-statistics/
[Accessed 19 August 2019].
O'Farrell, K., 2018. 2016-17 Australian Plastics Recycling Survey, Melbourne: Envisage Works.

Literature Review 10
Ohtomo, S. & Ohnuma, S., 2014. Psychological interventional approach for reduce resource
consumption: Reducing plastic bag usage at supermarkets. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 84(1),
pp. 57-65.
Rhodes, C., 2018. Plastic Pollution and Potential Solutions. Science Progress, 101(3), pp. 207-260.
So, W., Cheng, N., Chow, C. & Zhan, Y., 2016. Learning about the types of plastic wastes: Effectiveness of
inquiry learning strategies. Education 3-13, 44(3), pp. 311-324.
Vo, A., 2019. Australian Waste Facts & Statistics In 2019 – And What You Can Do To Reduce & Recycle
Waste. [Online]
Available at: http://earthmacros.com/australian-waste-facts-statistics/
[Accessed 19 August 2019].
Willis, K., Maureaud, C., Wilcox, C. & Hardesty, B., 2018. How successful are waste abatement
campaigns and government policies at reducing plastic waste into the marine environment?. Marine
Policy, 96(1), pp. 243-249.