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Recycling gone bad: When the option to recycle increases resource consumption
Author(s) -
Catlin Jesse R.,
Wang Yitong
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of consumer psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.433
H-Index - 110
eISSN - 1532-7663
pISSN - 1057-7408
DOI - 10.1016/j.jcps.2012.04.001
Subject(s) - resource (disambiguation) , consumption (sociology) , resource consumption , environmental economics , resource use , bin , economics , business , field (mathematics) , marketing , operations management , computer science , natural resource economics , mathematics , algorithm , sociology , computer network , social science , ecology , pure mathematics , biology
In this study, we propose that the ability to recycle may lead to increased resource usage compared to when a recycling option is not available. Supporting this hypothesis, our first experiment shows that consumers used more paper while evaluating a pair of scissors when the option to recycle was provided (vs. not provided). In a follow‐up field experiment, we find that the per person restroom paper hand towel usage increased after the introduction of a recycling bin compared to when a recycling option was not available. We conclude by discussing implications for research and policy.