The practice of recycling : understanding people´s motivations and barriers

Sammanfattning: The problem of waste has grown into one of today's biggest environmental problems affecting both humans and the environment. Because of a growing world population, continued economic growth and more unsustainable consumption patterns, more waste is being generated, and more resources are being used. Today, Sweden has a large and well-developed waste management system and a high recycling rate. However, problem still exists. In Sweden there is still a lot of material that is not recycled but rather thrown in the trash and a lot of material that are sorted wrong at the recycling stations. According to studies in Sweden, there exist lack of knowledge about how to recycle correctly and a great deal of uncertainty about recycling and the process. This study investigates people’s recycling behaviour by investigating how and why people are recycling or why they do not, and what barriers and motivations people have for recycling. The data was collected by conducting 17 interviews in 17 different households in a medium-sized municipality in southwestern Sweden. The analysis builds on a practice-based approach which helped study recycling not only through interviews but also through observing recycling as a social practice. The result showed that factors like access, availability, and knowledge are both barriers and motivations for people. There is a need for more closeness and availability to recycling facilities and more knowledge is needed about recycling, specifically on how to recycle in the right way and why. The study also indicates that knowledge and awareness about the environment influences peoples recycling behaviour and is also a common motivation for people. Feeling good and doing something that other people do was also a motivation and for why people recycle. This study contributes to a deeper understanding and broader insight into the behaviour of recycling. It can help to organize, describe, and explain environmental behaviours like recycling and as well improve future work with waste management and recycling.