TY - JOUR
T1 - The value-action gap in waste recycling
T2 - The case of undergraduates in Hong Kong
AU - Chung, Shan Shan
AU - Leung, Monica Miu Yin
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2012 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2007/10
Y1 - 2007/10
N2 - The discrepancy between verbal and actual commitment in waste recycling and environmental behavior is thought to have attenuated the effectiveness of many environmental policy and measures. Studies purport to show the existence of such a value-action gap in environmental issues has been largely based on matching the verbal commitment to environmental value through self-reported environmental behavioral data. Therefore, there is a lack of direct evidence to prove that such a discrepancy exists. This study demonstrates a methodology (contrasting on-site observation with self-reported results) to measure the gap between verbal commitment and actual recycling behavior and provides an explanation on the recycling behavior of students at Hong Kong Baptist University in the hope that the lessons learnt can be generalized to a wider context. Our findings indicate that a gap between verbal recycling commitment and corresponding action does exist in waste recycling on this university campus. By using multiple linear regression analysis, we found that the self-reported recycling behavior of undergraduates cannot be meaningfully explained by most variables previously suggested in the general value-action model.
AB - The discrepancy between verbal and actual commitment in waste recycling and environmental behavior is thought to have attenuated the effectiveness of many environmental policy and measures. Studies purport to show the existence of such a value-action gap in environmental issues has been largely based on matching the verbal commitment to environmental value through self-reported environmental behavioral data. Therefore, there is a lack of direct evidence to prove that such a discrepancy exists. This study demonstrates a methodology (contrasting on-site observation with self-reported results) to measure the gap between verbal commitment and actual recycling behavior and provides an explanation on the recycling behavior of students at Hong Kong Baptist University in the hope that the lessons learnt can be generalized to a wider context. Our findings indicate that a gap between verbal recycling commitment and corresponding action does exist in waste recycling on this university campus. By using multiple linear regression analysis, we found that the self-reported recycling behavior of undergraduates cannot be meaningfully explained by most variables previously suggested in the general value-action model.
KW - Hong Kong
KW - Recycling commitment
KW - Undergraduates
KW - Value-action gap
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34648827000&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00267-006-0363-y
DO - 10.1007/s00267-006-0363-y
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 17638045
AN - SCOPUS:34648827000
SN - 0364-152X
VL - 40
SP - 603
EP - 612
JO - Environmental Management
JF - Environmental Management
IS - 4
ER -