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Even with all the descriptive triangle symbols, color-coded bins, and heaps of information on how to sort your paper and plastic, people only recycle about a third of all recyclable things. A huge improvement from a few decades ago, yes, but we're hardly batting a thousand here. Why?
Part of the reason, scientists recently found, is psychological. Sometimes recycling just looks like trash, and on some subconscious level, that's enough for humans to chuck it in the landfill-bound bin.
Researchers from Boston University and the University of Alberta found that people are less likely to recycle something if it's damaged, dented, or deformed and generally resembles garbage—regardless of the material. Authors Remi Trudel and Jennifer J. Argo published their findings in the latest issue of the Journal of Consumer Research.
To reach this conclusion, they conducted a series of experiments, with a total of 183 participants. In one, volunteers were told that they were evaluating scissors, and were asked to cut up either one or two pieces of paper. Afterward, on their way out, people were far more likely to recycle the whole sheet of paper than the one cut to pieces. Researchers found a similar pattern with soda cans.
Apparently, in our heads, we evaluate the to-be-disposed object based on how useful it seems. If a piece of paper or can is still in tact, there's an extra, subconscious pang of guilt while throwing it away. If it's ripped to shreds or broken in half or distorted beyond it's intended function, we're more OK with chucking it.
"This movement of a product away from the prototypical standard for the category will decrease the product’s usefulness," the authors wrote. "It is perceived as less useful and as a result, more likely to be trashed."
Until now, the psychological aspect of the "post-consumption process" has been largely ignored, the authors say. They believe insights like this can lead to programs that inspire—or manipulate, in a way—people to recycle more.
Hey, any little bit helps, because we humans produce a shitload of waste. The frightening statistics:
- Two billion tons of trash is generated in a year.
- A single person tosses about 4 pounds of trash every day. That's 1.5 tons each year.
- Americans throw away 25 million plastic bottles every hour.
According to EPA estimates, 75 percent of that waste is recyclable, but we only recycle about 30 percent of it. One of the biggest hurdles to getting more people to do it is making it a habit—getting in the mindset of recyling and incorporating it into the daily routine. Just remember, the Earth doesn't care if there's a dent in the can.