Business challenge
Zero Waste Scotland (ZWS) recognised that public engagement is essential to improving recycling policy and service design. However, there had been no major study on public attitudes towards recycling since 2016, leaving a gap in understanding how households perceive and interact with recycling services today. Zero Waste Scotland commissioned research to explore current attitudes, awareness levels, barriers, and motivations related to recycling.
Our approach
We conducted a 17-minute online survey amongst 761 Scottish residents aged 18+. The survey looked to understand:
- Current public knowledge and attitudes to waste services.
- Identify barriers to recycling and classify them into different areas of the COM-B Framework.
- Evaluate perceptions of recycling services and awareness of ZWS
- Investigate the effectiveness of different sources of information and communication strategies
Results from the survey were cut by a number of different subgroup differences.
Outcome
The findings and recommendations from this study are being used to inform the development of user-friendly waste and recycling services, as well as targeted communication strategies to encourage widespread participation. Zero Waste Scotland is also in the process of publishing the report of this research.