A study on Social E-Waste Recycling

Behavior

Tanuj Agarwal
IIEBM-Indus Business School , Wakad, Pune, Maharashtra 411057,India.

Problem Statement :
Despite the growing concern for environmental sustainability, there is a significant
gap in social behaviors regarding the proper disposal of electronic e-waste.

Research Objective :
1. To understand the social behavior for E-Waste Management.
2. To spread awareness among the society for proper E-waste management.

Abstract :

The purpose of this paper is to understand the social behavior towards E-waste
recycling. Electronic waste disposal is becoming a major problem globally and
India is the world's third largest e-waste generator but recycles less than 2 percent
of it. For this to change it is very important to understand the social behavior
towards E-waste recycling and to understand how much people are aware about the
recycling techniques used in E-waste recycling .E‐waste encompasses a broad and
growing range of electronic devices like televisions, computers, refrigerators, air
conditioners, and hand held cellular phones etc, which contain various types of
toxic materials that poses both occupational and environmental health hazards
apart from polluting the adjoining environment severely. Millennials and Gen Z
are the largest segment of consumers of electronic products who are not yet
motivated to get sustainably rid of the e-waste that they are generating . Thus this
study aims to examine the e - waste recycling behavior among people of Pune ,
using a structured survey method using a questionnaire .Pune, the knowledge
capital of Maharashtra, termed as the fastest growing IT city and „Oxford of the
East‟ is ranked as 8th in the top 10 cities of India in terms of E-waste generation.
The sample size considered for the study is 150 which is collected through a
structured questionnaire. Finally the paper outlines the course of action for
improvement in e‐waste management and hopes to bring a change in the social
behavior for e-waste recycling.

Keywords: e-waste; social behavior , e-waste management , recycling behavior .

Introduction :

The exponential growth of the technology industry and the promotion of

digitalization led to unparalleled levels of electronic equipment consumption (e.g.,
telephones, laptops, TV screens, and fridges) . Once electronic equipment becomes
obsolete, it becomes waste from electrical and electronic equipment.E-waste poses
a severe challenge to sustainability owing to the numerous toxic substances it
contains and its massive waste stream.In addition, e-waste generation skyrocketed
after digital acceleration owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. If not properly
disposed of, e-waste represents a source of pollution that can contaminate waters
with toxic materials and emit greenhouse gasses, exacerbating global warming .
Proper e-waste management is crucial for achieving both resource efficiency and
environmental sustainability. This practice allows the disposal of e-waste without
harming the environment and the recovery of raw materials contained in e-waste.

India has become the largest producer of e-waste after China and the United States.
More than 95% of this waste is handled by the informal sector, which only adds to
the problem. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, India generated
1.71 million metric tons of e-waste as compared to the worldwide e-waste
generation which stood at 59.40 million metric tons.Growth in the IT and
communication sectors has enhanced the usage of electronic equipment
exponentially. Faster upgradation of electronic products is forcing consumers to
discard old electronic products very quickly, which, in turn, adds e-waste to the
solid waste stream. The growing problem of e-waste calls for greater emphasis on
recycling e-waste and better e-waste management.

The e-waste market in India faces some major challenges such as a lack of
awareness, safety concerns, and high recycling costs. Most consumers have less
knowledge about the hazardous nature of e-waste components or the outcome of
improper disposal. Studies conducted in various countries on consumer disposal
behavior of electrical and electronics devices found that consumers tend to store
End of Life (EoL) devices rather than discarding them safely. It is, thus, paramount
to identify the psychological correlates of consumers’ e-waste recycling intentions
and behaviors to trigger a change in users’ choices regarding recycling, ultimately
developing management practices that reduce the environmental impact of e-waste.

This study aims to understand the E-waste recycling techniques followed by

society so that , on the basis of existing practices, we can provide alternative
solutions to mitigate the risks associated with improper recycling of E-waste.

Literature review:

Vijayan., al. (2023) conducted a study to look into the causes and consequences of e-
waste recycling intentions . They studied the impact of attitude, subjective norms, and
perceived behavioral control on household residents’ intention to recycle e-waste.The
Findings of this study are that attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral
control are positively connected to recycling intention, and recycling intention, habits,
and convenience are favorably related to recycling behavior in households.

Das., al. (2023) conducted a study to list the problems and present E-Waste recycling
procedures, Life cycle assessment of E-waste, and EPR practices, along with potential
areas for improvement.

Sajid., al.(2022) conducted a study to identify the antecedents of e-waste recycling

and the role played by economic incentives in encouraging this behavior among
Indians. The findings were that environmental concern was found to be a significant
predictor of e-waste recycling intention and attitude .
Borthakur., al.(2017) conducted a study in an attempt to evaluate the current E-waste
disposal practices in India, particularly emphasizing on the city of Bangalore. Three
sectors listed as ‘bulk consumers’ of electrical and electronic equipment under the
recent E-waste (Management) Rules, 2016, namely (1) IT and electronics, (2) banking
and (3) education, are considered for the study purpose. They found that the bulk
consumers like IT and electronic companies, banks and academic institutes adopt two
different approaches to comply with the new EPR guidelines as per the E-waste
(Management) Rules, 2016. These are: (1) IT companies like Wipro adopts a ‘take-back
system’ where it is responsible for taking back the products originally produced in its
various facilities from consumers; (2) most of the banks and educational institutes take
‘auction’ as the measure by calling tenders from authorized E-waste recyclers with one
bank embracing an ‘E-waste exchange system’.

Shevchenko., al.(2019) conducted a study to explore the incentives that have been
used to increase consumer collection rates for end-of-life electrical and electronic
equipment (EoL EEE).The research suggests that implementing an economic incentive
based on the electronic bonus card system (EBCS) has several benefits compared to
existing incentives.The study suggested that for the adoption of EU action plan for the
Circular Economy ‘Closing the loop’ , consumer pro-circular recycling behavior is an
important component of e-waste management . Proper return of EoL products ensures
the saving of the value of parts and modules, and materials in the economy as long as
possible.

Turaga., al.(2019) conducted a study to address the critical environmental and

economic challenges posed by the rapid increase in e-waste in India. The authors
highlight the impact of informal sector practices, inadequate regulatory design and
enforcement, and low awareness as significant challenges. The paper emphasizes the
need for a robust e-waste management system, calling for meaningful engagement of
all stakeholders. It also discusses the role of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR),
innovative financing, and the importance of empowering producers in the value chain. It
advocates for a shift in framework to inspire collaborative approaches for sustainable
development, stressing the need for a central role for producers.

Murthy., al.(2022) conducted a study to bring out the global best practices in the field of
E-waste management, to shed light on the importance of policy implementation,
technology requirement and social awareness to arrive at a sustainable and circular
economy. In conclusion the paper stated that there is a need to create and enforce
mandatory global best practices in the devel- oping nations. A common global approach
towards legal framework, EPR, benchmark technologies, licenses or permissions and
transformation of the informal sector is the first and foremost step towards a sustainable
future.
Gupta., al.(2022) conducted a study to find how the individual consumers behave
towards e-waste. Awareness level of the individual consumers was also checked.
Findings of the paper are that approx half of the crowd has no idea of hazardous
materials in the e waste. It becomes essential to make the Indian citizens aware of the
e-waste hazards. Over half of the entire population is completely unaware of e-waste
management thought/concept. 80 % of the people opt to either re-sell their electronic
things to an informal collector before EOL or present to different family
members/friends/charity.

Iyer.(2014) conducted a study that would help us understand the awareness level and
attitude of students and faculties towards e-waste segregation in academic institutions
in Bangalore as they are one of the major producers of e-waste due to implementation
of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Higher Education. Findings of
the study are that compared to the student group, faculties seem to be more concerned
about the issues related to e-waste. Faculties would definitely like to educate and
encourage their peers group and student group about e-waste related issues. They are
ready to pay for the scientific disposal methods and they want the producers i.e. the
companies to take care of this process.

Bhat.,al.(2014) conducted a study to understand the behavior of 10 different brands of

mobile users of Pune City with special reference to aspects such as the awareness
about E-waste, E-waste Policy, ExtendedProducer Responsibility, Mobile manufacturer
recycling policy, E-waste disposal behavior and effects of E- waste. Over 90 per cent of
materials present in mobile phones can be recovered. The primary investigation of the
study reveals that the consumer awareness about e-waste is good but when it comes to
the mobile disposal they are not aware of EPR, collection centers in Pune city and so
face problems in carrying out their responsibility as a responsible consumer.

Mufti., al.(2022) The economic benefits of WEEE through the recovery and recycling of
materials, which can then be reused and resold as secondary materials, is a great way
for individuals to get jobs and businesses to generate cash. The problem of e- waste, its
sources, content, and treatment as associated garbage have all been critically
examined in this research.They concluded that a legislative framework for implementing
EPR and RoHS must be put in place. Adoption of ecologically sound technology for e-
waste recycling and reuse, as well as EPR and RoHS, provides a feasible alternative for
environmentally sound e-waste management. Also, the government must ensure that
sufficient funds are available to carry out various reduce, recycle, and recover works in
a timely manner in order to alleviate the sufferings of the common people as a result of
the continuing devastation caused by E-Waste.
Research Methodology:

The base for this study is primary data collected randomly from the natives from
Pune. A simple random sampling method was considered for identifying the
respondents for the present study. A sample size of 150 was considered for
collecting data which was collected through giving a structured questionnaire to
respondents directly, which resulted in primary data collection, and the study is
intended to identify the Indian social behavior towards E-waste recycling. The
various items used in the questionnaire to measure the construct dimensions were
adopted from previous research, and various variables and items were identified
from research papers related to the present study while undertaking an exhaustive
literature review. In the structured questionnaire, all the selected items were
presented in the form of variables along with a five-point scale where 1 stood for
Strongly Disagree and 5 stood for Strongly Agree in the agreement of the variable.
The two-step strategy was adopted for data analysis. In the first stage, frequency
analysis was done along with the mean on all the demographic variables. At the
second stage, factor analysis was done on the variables identified from different
researches.

Data Analysis:

● Demographic Analysis:
 Chart 1(a) - Gender Demographic

From the above chart we can see the gender demographic in which out of the total
response of 114 43 are female respondents , 42 are male respondents and 29 have
preferred not to say.

Chart 1(b) - Education Demographic

From the above chart we can see the Education qualification demographic in which out
of the total response of 114 , 14 are Doctorate , 24 are Graduate , 20 are High School , 19
are Intermediate and 37 are Post Graduate.

Chart 1(c) - Age Demographic

From the above chart we can see the Education qualification demographic in which out
of the total response of 114 , 23 are Below 21 Years , 29 are 21-30 Years , 17 are 30-40
Years , 41-50 are 19 Years , 13 are 51-60 Years and 13 are Above 60 Years.

Chart 1(d) - Occupation Demographic

From the above chart we can see the Education qualification demographic in which out
of the total response of 114 , 34 are Students , 23 are Government Employees , 21 are
Home maker , 21 are Private Sector and 15 are Self-Employed.

Chart 1(e) - Monthly Income Demographic

From the above chart we can see the Education qualification demographic in which out
of the total response of 114 , 34 are having Income below 25000 , 22 are having Income
in range 25000-50000 , 20 are having Income in the range 50000-75000 , 18 are having
Income in the range 75000-100000 and 20 are having income above 100000.

● Factor Analysis:

Factor
pattern:

F1 F2 F3 Initial Final Specific

communality communality variance

Importance 0.202 -0.310 0.409 0.048 0.304 0.696

 Awareness 0.131 -0.161 0.004 0.032 0.043 0.957

Different 0.688 0.167 0.101 0.106 0.512 0.488

Types

Recycle -0.340 -0.171 0.156 0.083 0.169 0.831

Rewards -0.017 0.091 0.201 0.027 0.049 0.951

Consistenc 0.294 -0.398 -0.322 0.060 0.348 0.652

e

Periodicity 0.069 0.418 -0.022 0.064 0.180 0.820

Values in bold correspond for each variable to the factor for which the squared cosine is
the largest

Above table gives us the factor analysis for the variables we have taken into
consideration , this states that there are 3 factors to consider for the research which are
related to other variables in the research.

Findings & Interpretation :

From the data analysis that has been conducted on the collected data we can interpret that
for Factor 1 it has strong influence on the awareness of different types of e-waste disposal
techniques and it has weak influence on frequency of recycling e-waste. Similarly for
Factor 2 it has weak influence on consistency of recycling and awareness of e-waste
recycling laws and it has strong influence on discussing e-waste recycling with others .
Finally Factor 3 has a strong influence on the importance of recycling and the importance
of rewards for properly recycling the e-waste.

Conclusion:
The explosion of electronic products over the last decade or so and the corresponding
rapid rise in e-waste pose a significant environmental challenge to the governments,
particularly in developing countries. The limited impact that India’s seven-year old
regulations have had is an indication of the challenges that the country faces as far as e-
waste management is concerned. Consumers’ pro-circular behavior is an important
component of a circular economy operationalization and the proper return of EoL product
as a one from pro-circular consumers’ action allows to save the value of materials and
products in the economy for as long as possible and reduce environmental pollution. With
this research we can conclude that people are aware about different types of e-waste
disposal techniques but the frequency of recycling e-waste has a very weak influence .
Similarly respondents do discuss the recycling of e-waste with others but they are not
consistent in recycling e-waste and they are not aware about the laws in recycling e-waste
and lastly respondents are motivated with rewards for recycling e-waste.

Limitations:

This study has a few limitations. First Responses were collected through online
questionnaires instead of collecting the responses virtually , collecting them physically
would be more effective. Second Responses and insights from the respondents were
restricted. Respondents could be disinclined to participate since the study requires a
definitive answer. Therefore, it is helpful to consider the possibility of a research
limitation. Third, the e-waste recycling intentions are highly country specific. Thus, the
findings of this study could not be generalized even to other developing countries.
Therefore, we motivate scholars to replicate the study in emerging as well emerging
economies. Fourth , the variables consider for this research are very limited there many
other variables that affect the social behavior towards e-waste recycling , thus future
studies must focus on those variables also.

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