IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v9y2017i3p344-d91528.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Getting Wasted at WOMADelaide: The Effect of Signage on Waste Disposal

Author

Listed:
  • Sarah Verdonk

    (School of Natural and Built Environments, University of South Australia, Adelaide 5000, Australia)

  • Keri Chiveralls

    (Appleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide 5034, Australia)

  • Drew Dawson

    (Appleton Institute, Central Queensland University, Adelaide 5034, Australia)

Abstract

In recent years, there has been a rise in environmental consciousness and community awareness of waste disposal issues. However, discrepancies remain between people’s attitude and their behavior regarding waste disposal and recycling; commonly known as the “attitude behavior gap”. This study was designed to aid in bridging this gap by exploring how signage, incorporating psychological principles and effective sign design, can encourage people to correctly dispose of their unwanted materials. The utilization of festivals, mass gatherings and events as spaces to test the impact of pro-environmental messaging on behavior is an emerging field of research. This study investigated the role of signage in aiding attendees of the world music festival WOMADelaide to correctly dispose of their unwanted materials. To complement and support the three-bin system utilized by the waste contractors for the event, four signs were developed and tested in the catering area. These signs included a baseline sign, as well as three motivational signs containing graphics and messages, based on different theoretical positions or psychological principles. The results gained from analyzing the concealed camera footage indicated that the bins under the three motivational signs elicited a greater number of deposits. However, the waste was no better sorted than those located under the baseline sign. The findings of this study support previous research into the “attitude behavior gap” and highlight areas for future research into signage in a festival setting.

Suggested Citation

  • Sarah Verdonk & Keri Chiveralls & Drew Dawson, 2017. "Getting Wasted at WOMADelaide: The Effect of Signage on Waste Disposal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-17, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:3:p:344-:d:91528
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/9/3/344/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/9/3/344/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hornik, Jacob & Cherian, Joseph & Madansky, Michelle & Narayana, Chem, 1995. "Determinants of recycling behavior: A synthesis of research results," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 105-127.
    2. Accorsi, Riccardo & Cascini, Alessandro & Cholette, Susan & Manzini, Riccardo & Mora, Cristina, 2014. "Economic and environmental assessment of reusable plastic containers: A food catering supply chain case study," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 88-101.
    3. Noah J. Goldstein & Robert B. Cialdini & Vladas Griskevicius, 2008. "A Room with a Viewpoint: Using Social Norms to Motivate Environmental Conservation in Hotels," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(3), pages 472-482, March.
    4. Terlau, Wiltrud & Hirsch, Darya, 2015. "Sustainable Consumption and the Attitude-Behaviour-Gap Phenomenon - Causes and Measurements towards a Sustainable Development," 2015 International European Forum (144th EAAE Seminar), February 9-13, 2015, Innsbruck-Igls, Austria 206233, International European Forum on System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks.
    5. Zi Yin Lin & Xiao Wang & Chang Jun Li & Micheil P. R. Gordon & Marie K. Harder, 2016. "Visual Prompts or Volunteer Models: An Experiment in Recycling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(5), pages 1-16, May.
    6. Terlau, Wiltrud & Hirsch, Darya, 2015. "Sustainable Consumption and the Attitude-Behaviour-Gap Phenomenon - Causes and Measurements towards a Sustainable Development," International Journal on Food System Dynamics, International Center for Management, Communication, and Research, vol. 6(3), pages 1-16, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Babak Nemat & Mohammad Razzaghi & Kim Bolton & Kamran Rousta, 2023. "Design-Based Approach to Support Sorting Behavior of Food Packaging," Clean Technol., MDPI, vol. 5(1), pages 1-32, February.
    2. Kiriaki M. Keramitsoglou & Konstantinos P. Tsagarakis, 2018. "Public Participation in Designing the Recycling Bins to Encourage Recycling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-17, April.

    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. Claudia Arias & Carlos A. Trujillo, 2020. "Perceived Consumer Effectiveness as A Trigger of Behavioral Spillover Effects: A path towards Recycling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-17, May.
    2. Andy Felix Jităreanu & Mioara Mihăilă & Alexandru-Dragoș Robu & Florin-Daniel Lipșa & Carmen Luiza Costuleanu, 2022. "Dynamic of Ecological Agriculture Certification in Romania Facing the EU Organic Action Plan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-17, September.
    3. Anne-Sophie Gay & Julia M. Warden & Hakan Lane, 2024. "Climate labels and the restaurant industry: a qualitative study," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 369-379, June.
    4. Silvia H. Bonilla & Helton R. O. Silva & Marcia Terra da Silva & Rodrigo Franco Gonçalves & José B. Sacomano, 2018. "Industry 4.0 and Sustainability Implications: A Scenario-Based Analysis of the Impacts and Challenges," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-24, October.
    5. Carmen Bălan, 2020. "How Does Retail Engage Consumers in Sustainable Consumption? A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-25, December.
    6. Adriana Zait & Andreia Gabriela Andrei, 2019. "Civic Engagement at the Crossroads of Online and Offline Spaces: A PLS-SEM Assessment," Scientific Annals of Economics and Business (continues Analele Stiintifice), Alexandru Ioan Cuza University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, vol. 66(4), pages 559-572, December.
    7. Claudia Arias & Jhon Mario Quiroga Beltrán & Javier Mauricio Martínez Ariza & Javier Bernardo Cadena Lozano & Miguel Angel Bello Bernal, 2022. "Pro-Circular Consumer Profile: An Approach to Their Identification and Characterization Based on the Components of the Value-Belief-Norm Theory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-36, June.
    8. Sandra Grabowska & Sebastian Saniuk & Bożena Gajdzik, 2022. "Industry 5.0: improving humanization and sustainability of Industry 4.0," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 127(6), pages 3117-3144, June.
    9. Turck, Angela & Schloemer, Lasse & Terlau, Wiltrud, 2023. "Farmers are caught in Tri-Dilemma - Objectives and Challenges for Biodiversity in German Nature-Protected Areas," International Journal on Food System Dynamics, International Center for Management, Communication, and Research, vol. 14(02), June.
    10. Nolte, Kerstin & Schaefer, Kerstin J., 2024. "Widening the gap? Evidence from Germany for changes in the attitude behaviour gap for transportation during COVID-19," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    11. Lisa Richter-Beuschel & Susanne Bögeholz, 2019. "Student Teachers’ Knowledge to Enable Problem-Solving for Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-24, December.
    12. Pagnarith Srun & Kiyo Kurisu, 2019. "People’s Tendency Toward Norm-Interventions to Tackle Waste Disposal in Public Open Spaces in Phnom Penh, Cambodia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-13, November.
    13. Hyesun Hwang & Harim Yeo, 2022. "Inconsistency between subjective propensity and practice of sustainable consumption: Impact of the consumers' values‐in‐behavior and social participation," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(6), pages 1796-1810, December.
    14. Grilli, Gianluca & Curtis, John, 2021. "Encouraging pro-environmental behaviours: A review of methods and approaches," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    15. Carla Rossi & Francesca Rivetti, 2020. "Assessing Young Consumers’ Responses to Sustainable Labels: Insights from a Factorial Experiment in Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-23, December.
    16. Parul Yadav & Bhawna Agarwal & Jones Mathew, 2024. "Indian voters’ attitude and behavior toward a political brand for producing green products: a mediation model," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 1-14, December.
    17. Mia Pihlajamäki & Arja Asikainen & Suvi Ignatius & Päivi Haapasaari & Jouni T. Tuomisto, 2019. "Forage Fish as Food: Consumer Perceptions on Baltic Herring," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-16, August.
    18. Eva-Maria Waltner & Werner Rieß & Christoph Mischo, 2019. "Development and Validation of an Instrument for Measuring Student Sustainability Competencies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-20, March.
    19. Atsushi Watabe & Simon Gilby, 2020. "To See a World in a Grain of Sand—The Transformative Potential of Small Community Actions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-19, September.
    20. von Geibler, Justus & Stelzer, Franziska, 2020. "Reallabore als umweltbezogenes Politikinstrument: Kurzstudie im Rahmen der Digitalagenda des Bundesministeriums für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit," Wuppertal Reports 19, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:9:y:2017:i:3:p:344-:d:91528. 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.