If littering is the act of dropping rubbish on the ground in public places, then this seems to be becoming a popular pastime. The UK Countryside Charity tightens the definition as follows. First, they say the offensive material must be ‘thrown down, dropped or deposited’. And secondly the waste must be ‘left or walked away from’. This serves as a useful introduction to the psychology of littering.
The Psychology of Littering Under the Lens
Scientists at several United States Universities got together to examine littering behaviour in context of personal and environmental predictors. The environmental sector generally treats litter as dumped household waste. And other personal trash that is small enough to fit in a council rubbish bag. Anything larger than that is fly tipping by the process of elimination.
Road Litter Picker near Tiverton (Lewis Clarke BY CC 2.0)
How the Scientists Gathered Information
The report in the Research Gate Journal explains how the scientists observed littering behaviour among 9,757 individuals at 130 outdoor public locations in the United States. Their focus was broad, although they did include smokers as a subset.
- Smokers as a group littered cigarette butts 65% of the time.
- While littering in the broader sense occurred 17% of the time.
- The offences were less likely to occur near a receptacle.
- Previously littered material triggered repeat behaviour.
- Males and younger people were more likely to break the law
There seems to be a similar pattern to the psychology of littering in the UK. Perhaps more offenders would be successfully prosecuted, if council law enforcement agencies followed up on these leads.
The Main Causes of Littering Observed
The researchers drew a useful distinction between litter (the items) and littering (the behaviour). For example, an item deliberately dropped off from a house clearance is evidently individual littering. While a newspaper blown from an official receptacle could unlikely be tied to an offender.
The team were unable to pin down the ratio of littering attributable to individual behaviour. Although they found evidence to suggest ‘that a large majority of litter is linked with individual disposals’. Here are some of the data in more detail:
ROADSIDE LITTER
- Some 70% of litter on roadsides is due to individuals, with motorists contributing 52%.
- The rest is from unsecured loads (21%), vehicles (5%), and roadside containers (4%).
TRANSITION POINTS
A similar trend emerged when the researchers visited transition points such as bus and train stations.
- Some 88% of litter was due to individuals passing by or using the service.
- While 69% of larger items were due to pedestrians, with motorists causing 21%.
This reinforces the importance of individuals causing litter, they conclude.
A Bus Stop in New York (T Dorante 10 BY CC 4.0)
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Unpicking the Psychology of Littering Further
The broad conclusion when the research began was that littering is more common among males, and younger adults. Although individuals living in rural communities are also more likely to commit offences than those living in cities. It was also an accepted fact that littering was more likely to occur in littered or ‘disordered’ areas, than at litter-free ones.
The conclusion by observers watching from some distance were:
- A litterer was 93% likely to have the offending item(s) in their hand(s).
- They were 95% likely to litter within the area under observation.
- Some 97% of the items they disposed complied with the definition of litter.
- Some 98% of the individuals they observed clearly intended to litter.
- The mean distance from a suitable receptacle was 0.94 feet.
The Availability of Legal Alternatives
The research project covered 130 different sites. Of these, 91% had at least one trash receptacle. However, just two of these had no visible litter, and the likelihood of finding recycling facilities was only 12%.
Towards the Psychology of Littering
We carefully chose a study leading back to 2013, because we wanted to understand the psychology without the overlay of global warming. Moreover, the randomly-chosen sites represented a broad spread of geographic locations. Perhaps the most alarming finding is that 81% of littering was by deliberate intent.
But there was more to come. Further on, the report discloses ‘15% of general littering acts result from contextual variables at the location, while 85% results from personal qualities’. And of course this in turn suggests the nature of the site itself is not the prime determining factor.
What You Can Do to Reduce Litter
Fly tipping, littering, and dumped household waste are a reflection of lazy, irresponsible people. They are also clearly lemming-like, since they are more inclined to dump where they already find rubbish lying. This is an offence under law and clearly it should be prosecuted.
Don’t Let This Be Your Furniture (Alan Stanton BY CC 2.0)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fly-tipping_in_Kemble_Road_N17.jpg
However, from what we know from our own experience at Avery Associates, many of the larger items are dumped by shadowy house clearance operators, who don’t care for the environment at all.
May we therefore recommend you choose a provider you can trust to value, and dispose of your assets if you are downsizing? Read one of our many Jeffrey Avery Associates reviews following. And then decide whether we should be doing business with each other, as we believe we should.
One of Many Heartfelt Reviews
Dear Jeffrey. I want to extend a heartfelt thank to you and your team for the hero’s work that you all did yesterday at the house in Highbury. You made a stressful day simple and I honestly could not believe how the house looked when your team had finished. Spotless, completely clear and ready for the new owners. I’ll be proud to hand the keys over.
Everyone was thoroughly professional, friendly and courteous and totally low maintenance. From the quotation process through to completion yesterday afternoon it has been impressive and delightful to work with you. Rest assured I would have no hesitation in recommending you to either friends or colleagues. Many thanks for your help – it was a pleasure doing business. With all good wishes, Imogen.
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