A cross-cultural perspective on facilitators of recycling

This study investigates the overall effect of individual-level variables on predicting recycling in a cross-cultural context. The objective of the study was to investigate the role of social norms and perceived behavioral control as moderators and/or mediators of the relations between culture and reported recycling behavior. A survey was conducted among 172 Jewish and Muslim-Bedouin residents of a rural regional council in Israel. The survey included scales measuring social norms, perceived behavioral control, and reported recycling. Results revealed strong cross-cultural differences in reported recycling behaviors, with higher reported recycling among Jewish than among Muslim-Bedouin residents. Perceived behavioral control made an almost identical contribution to the explained variability of recycling among both Jewish and Muslim-Bedouin residents. Social norms were a significantly stronger predictor in explaining recycling among Muslim-Bedouin than among Jewish residents, yet, no significant interaction effect was found between culture and social norms in explaining recycling. Both social norms and perceived behavioral control mediated the relations between culture and recycling.