Waste prevention and social preferences: the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations

Abstract

Though reduction is at the top of the waste management hierarchy, EU policies have historically introduced waste management incentives mainly concerning waste recovery and recycling, in addition to actions aimed at reducing disposal in landfills. Only very recently have EU policies started defining targets for waste reduction. Against this backdrop, we aim to examine whether individual behavior towards waste reduction is more strongly driven by extrinsic motivations such as social norms, or intrinsic motivations such as purely altruistic preferences. We exploit a large new survey that covers thousands of individuals for the EU27, to test the role of motivations when people are faced with collective management of the public good. We find that diverse motivations are behind the reduction of food waste: extrinsic motivations nevertheless increase the likelihood of producing more waste. Green consumption / recycling-oriented attitudes and individualistic thinking about waste management relate to 'waste producers'. This shows that in order to go beyond a recycling-oriented society towards reduction of the source of waste externality -its generation -the nature of social preferences matters. Behavior patterns leading to waste reduction are less socially oriented, less exposed to peer pressure and more reliant upon purely 'altruistic' social attitudes. Policy makers should learn from the relevant insights on social behavior we here address if our societies aim to fully integrate the idea of waste reduction alongside recycling in the future.

One Without the Other? Behavioural and Incentive Policies for Household Waste Management

“…In responding to intrinsic motivation, agents may be altruistic and make environmentally friendly choices, maximizing both their individual welfare and the social welfare. Cecere et al (2014) show that in the case of extrinsic motivations, agents are encouraged to engage in pro-environmental behaviour because of external pressures, corresponding to the reputational concerns defined by Bénabou and Tirole (2006). However, note that, as underlined by Deci (1975), social norms and reputation are difficult to classify as intrinsic or extrinsic motivations.…”

“…These works focus on warm-glow, social pressure and surroundings (Hornik et al, 1995;Courcelle et al, 1998;Cheung et al, 1999) and, more recently, nudges. Economists are incorporating these concepts into analyses of waste management (Brekke et al, 2010;Viscusi et al, 2011;Abbott et al, 2013;Cecere et al, 2014) defined in various ways. For example, Andreoni (1990) defines warm-glow as a feeling of inner welfare that comes from performing a good deed while Brekke et al (2003) translate it as a positive self-image and consider it the threshold to what individuals believe is socially responsible behaviour.…”

“…In a study of the factors affecting individual recycling and waste reduction behaviour, Cecere et al (2014) assume that agents only respond to government economic incentives, such as taxes and subsidies, and consider motivations that extend beyond economic incentives. In responding to intrinsic motivation, agents may be altruistic and make environmentally friendly choices, maximizing both their individual welfare and the social welfare.…”

Creating a sustainable and resource efficient future: A methodological toolkit for municipalities

“…Behaviour change is of central importance in bringing about significant reductions in energy end use and reduction of waste (see, for instance, [31,32]) and constitutes the third pillar of the RE-SEEties approach acknowledging that, in most cases, this issue is often treated separately and secondary to technological development. This has changed over the years and there is now a growing need for systematic approach to these interrelated topics.…”

Environmental Stewardship: A Conceptual Review and Analytical Framework

“…For example, Asah and Blahna (2012); Asah et al (2014) show how personal and social motivations are stronger predictors of people's participation in volunteer urban stewardship activities than environmental rationales. Furthermore, intrinsic motivations might be more durable than extrinsic ones for promoting environmental action (Ryan et al 2003;Cecere et al 2014;Cetas and Yasué 2017). Motivational crowding out can occur when extrinsic incentives (e.g., monetary payments for stewardship, payments for ecosystem services) are applied in contexts where strong intrinsic motivations for stewardship already exist (Rode et al 2015;Sorice and Donlan 2015).…”