Initiating waste separation program in a university campus a case study of vietnam japan university, vietnam national university, hanoi

To promote waste separation, there is a need to emphasize the pro-environmental behavior change, since people is the main separation actor and waste separation is a kind of pro-environme

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

VIETNAM JAPAN UNIVERSITY -

DAU THI THU DAN

INITIATING WASTE SEPARATION

PROGRAM IN A UNIVERSITY CAMPUS:

A CASE STUDY OF VIETNAM JAPAN UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

MASTER'S THESIS

Hanoi, 2018

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

VIETNAM JAPAN UNIVERSITY -

DAU THI THU DAN

INITIATING WASTE SEPARATION

PROGRAM IN A UNIVERSITY CAMPUS:

A CASE STUDY OF VIETNAM JAPAN UNIVERSITY,

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

MAJOR: PUBLIC POLICY

SUPERVISORS:

Associate Prof Dr NAOKO KAIDA

Dr NGUYEN THUY ANH

Hanoi, 2018

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This thesis could not have been possible without the guidance I received from my supervisors It is my honor to take this opportunity to express my best regards, deepest sense of gratitude to my supervisor at University of Tsukuba, Prof Naoko Kaida for her careful, kindness and precious guidance which were extremely valuable for my study both theoretically and practically Despite her busy schedules, Prof Naoko Kaida always tries her best to help me when I am in need I also would like to express my deepest gratitude and special thanks to Dr Thuy Anh for her willingness to take me in when I was feeling lost at the beginning with this thesis, and her great support to guide

me through the difficulty during the last period I must have been lucky enough to have Prof Naoko Kaida and Dr Thuy Anh as my supervisors to walk me through the up and down in the journey to accomplish my master thesis

I would like to express my deepest thanks to all the Japanese and Vietnamese professors for their supports and advises, especially Prof Okamoto Naohisa, Prof Koji Fujimoto, Prof Katsura Ryotaro and Dr Vu Hoang Linh

I would like to convey my special thanks to our administrative assistants, Ms Nguyen Thi Mai Phuong and Ms Pham Thi Thu Ha for their great assistants

My deepest gratitude and special thanks to Vietnam Japan university, University of Tsukuba and JICA organization for creating opportunities for me to make this happens Last but not least, for the two years of studying master, my family has been my greatest motivator, without their supports I could not go through this journey by myself I cannot thank them enough for what they have given me I also would like

to send my thankfulness to all of my friends who accompany me on this journey, for their great supports

I consider this journey as a big milestone in my career path I will try to take advantage of all the skills and knowledge that I have gained during these two years

in the most possible way in order for my career development And hope to contribute a part to the sustainable development of society

ABSTRACT

The significant increasing rate of Municipal household waste (MHSW) in quantity alongside with the improper waste management has caused serious environmental degradation and health hazard in Vietnam Unless, the waste generation is reduced significantly, the amount of waste will keep growing associated by a series of problems The 3Rs principles (reduce, reuse, recycle) would be the answer to this problem, in which waste separation plays as a key practice To promote waste separation, there is a need to emphasize the pro-environmental behavior change, since people is the main separation actor and waste separation is a kind of pro-environmental behavior

The study utilizes the Shalom Schwartz‟s Norm Activation Theory (1968) to assess relationships between peoples‟ awareness, attitudes, norms, and behaviors related to waste separation In addition, intervention strategy specifically prompts techniques is also used to promote waste separation behavior The study chose Vietnam Japan University as a case study Waste separation initiatives were conducted including questionnaire survey distribution and experimental intervention

Results of 120 samples obtained from questionnaire survey were analyzed using structural equation modeling Results of the experimental intervention were analyzed using a paired t-test Findings showed that the study‟s basic framework is conceptually plausible; the use of a sequential procedure of the NAM is effective in explicating the pro-environmental decision formation of waste separation performers Findings also stated that the single use of intervention techniques (prompts) may not hold the effect for a long-term period The study suggests the use

of commitment techniques in the combination with other techniques might maximize the effect in the long run The implications regarding these findings are discussed

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES i

LIST OF FIGURES ii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Research background 1

1.2 Problem statement 2

1.3 Purpose of the study 3

1.4 Research questions 3

1.5 Research method 3

1.6 Limitation of the study 4

1.7 Structure and overview of the thesis 5

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 6

2.1 Current waste management practices and challenges in Vietnam 6

2.2.1 Waste generation in Vietnam 6

2.2.2 Waste collection and treatment 7

2.2.3 The impacts of MHSW 7

2.2 Waste separation at source and the role of public participation 8

2.3 The role of higher education institution in waste separation 9

2.4 Pro-environmental behavior 10

2.5 Widely-used theories to explain pro-environmental behavior 11

2.6 Theoretical framework: Schwartz‟s Norm-Activation Model 13

2.7 Intervention strategy to change pro-environmental behavior 15

2.8 Hypothesis 17

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 18

3.1 Research approach and methodology framework 18

3.2 Study site 18

3.3 Questionnaire survey design 19

3.3.1 Questionnaire respondents sample 19

3.3.2 Questionnaire design 20

3.3.3 Data collection 21

3.3.4 Data analysis 22

3.4 The experimental intervention design 22

3.4.1 Experimental conditions 22

3.4.2 The poster designs for intervention 25

3.4.3 The experiment procedures 27

3.4.4 Participants 28

3.4.5 Data collection 28

3.4.6 Data analysis 28

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 29

4.1 Results 29

4.1.1 Questionnaire data results 29

4.4.2 The experiment results 33

4.2 Discussions 36

4.2.1 The questionnaire survey 36

4.2.2 The experiment 37

4.2.3 Pro-environmental behavior maintenance 40

CHAPTER 5: RECOMMENDATION 43

5.1 Implications for facilitating waste separation in VJU 43

5.2 Implications for facilitating waste separation in Vietnam 46

CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION 49

REFERENCES 50

Appendix 59

LIST OF TABLES

Page

Table 3.1 Demographic of survey respondents 19

Table 4.1 Summary statistics of the NAM items 30

Table 4.2 Correlations coefficients of the variables of the model 31

Table 4.3 Correlations coefficients of the variables of the model 32

Table 4.4 Weight (kg) of each bin and correct separation percentage (%) of second and third period 33

Table 4.5 Comparison of correct separation performance percentage of bottle and can between the second and third period 34

Table 4.6 Comparison of correct separation performance percentage of other waste between the second and third period 34

Table 4.7 Comparison of correct separation performance percentage of paper between the second and third period 35

LIST OF FIGURES

Page Figure 2.1 The Norm activation model (NAM) 13

Figure 3.1 Waste separation bins in the hallway 24

Figure 3.2 Waste separation bins in class/office room 24

Figure 3.3 The separation bin posters 25

Figure 3.4 The separation guideline poster 25

Figure 3.5 The promotion posters 27

Figure 4.1 Structural equation model of the NAM on waste separation behavior 33

Figure 4.2 Comparison of correct waste separation of each period 35

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AR Ascription of responsibility

JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency

KISS Keep it simple and straightforward

MHSW Municipal household sold waste

MOC ministry of construction

MONRE Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment

NGOs Non-governmental organizations

PBC Perceived behavioral control

SEM Structural equation model

TPB Theory of planned behavior

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Research background

Solid waste, one of the major environmental issues, has been becoming a serious problem for developing countries in the recent years As a consequence of rapid industrialization, urbanization, economic growth, and population expansion with their higher income, the quantity of municipal solid waste (MSW) is increasing significantly, associated by a series of problems related to health hazards and environmental degradation The global waste generation in urban areas is approximate 2 billion tons annually and it is projected to grow nearly 20 percent per-capita generation until the year 2100 (Wilson et al., 2015) This alarming rate calls for an effective and efficient solid-waste management program to manage the increasing amount of waste generated Among various waste reduction attempts, the separation of waste at source has been seen as a key strategy to the MSW problems (Yang et al., 2011) “Source separation refers to the separation of MSW into several categories at the generation source according to the different characteristics of each

material before further treatment” (Yang et al., 2011)

Waste separation at source has been fairly successful in developed nations, such as Japan, and now it is widely spread to developing countries, as an effective mean of enhancing waste recycling and disposal reduction The main body of waste separation

at source has been considered to be the separation actor Thus, encouraging environmental behavior as source separation behavior is essential as well as should be prioritized in term of seeking for a sustainable solution The participation of people need to be realized in the process of developing waste separation concept, in order to seek for a profound waste management system generally

pro-Many studies suggested that the influence of public awareness and attitudes toward waste is considered to play a vital role at all stages of the solid waste management process (Imam et al., 2008) There is a need to place individual‟s intrinsic and moral

motivation emphasized in the strategies of recycling and correctly managing MSW to promote waste reduction behavior (Pakpour et al., 2014)

1.2 Problem statement

Rapid urbanization and changing in lifestyle has led to many environmental consequences for urban areas in Vietnam One of the problems of the urban environment is the increasing in the amount of waste generation that cause serious environmental degradation However, the waste management system in Vietnam is considered to be ineffective and unsustainable constituting a great cause to the problems Whilst the separation of waste at source plays a major role in waste management to minimize waste generation, at the same time save the limited resources, Vietnam currently has not applied an official waste separation system yet The need to establish a sustainable waste management through waste separation is addressed Community and stakeholders‟ involvement is one of the dimensions of waste management The “participation of people" needs to be analyzed and evaluated, from which there are effective solutions for the overall waste management process

This research would take an approach towards university students The reason is that this group has a developed awareness about the community around them, compared to the students of the lower levels (primary or high school level) Thus, if this group could comprehend or understand the need to separate waste, they would spread this understanding to other members of society as they grow to join the workforce and build a family

However, In Vietnam, waste separation in universities has not been undertaken

in a proper way And there is still a limitation of research on this issue Thus, the study chooses Vietnam Japan University (VJU) as a case study due to the fact that VJU is considered to be on the path toward sustainable development therefore, VJU seems to be an ideal environment in which the green approach would be nurtured It is hoped that through this program VJU can spread positive effects toward society

1.3 Purpose of the study

The overall objective of the study is to establish a sustainable waste management system in university campuses and residential communities in Vietnam The study focuses on explaining individual‟s waste separation at source from psychological perspectives To this end, the study takes Vietnam Japan University (VJU) as a case study This study will utilize Shalom Schwartz‟s Norm Activation Theory (1968) to assess relationships between peoples‟ awareness, attitudes, norms, and behaviors related to waste separation Understand these cognitive processes will help determine the likely success of persuasion methods to promote waste separation behavior The study expects VJU through this program

to spread positive effects on this issue toward the society

1.4 Research questions

The research seeks to answer these following questions:

1 What is the current status of waste handling in VJU?

2 What is the level of awareness of students and staff members in VJU toward waste separation?

3 What kind of the attitudes do students and staff members have toward waste separation?

4 What is the level of participation among the students and staff members in waste separation?

5 What factors influence the behavior of students and staff members in separating waste?

6 What are the motivation factors that lead to the change in the behavior of students and staff members in separating waste?

7 What are the solutions to promote the waste separation in VJU?

1.5 Research method

The study employed a mixed method approach in which quantitative and qualitative method were implemented during the same time frame in order to obtain

a comprehensively and insightfully understanding of the research problem In the quantitative method, data was collected from a questionnaire survey and the experiment which were conducted at the same time In the qualitative method, multiple sources of data including documentation, archival records and interviews were recruited to collect data on waste separation approach and practice In order to ensure the validity of the research, both quantitative and qualitative data were used

to take advantage of both methods

1.6 Limitation of the study

There are a few limitations of the study that should be noted First, the sample size in this study is relative small (n=120) making it not a problematic A larger sample size version of this study would offer stronger generalizability of the findings

Second, since the baseline situations of three floors are not similar and comparable, and no separated areas for different departments for staffs and students, the study was not able to conduct a without stimuli posters condition included in the experiment Thus, the generalizability of the study is limited Future research should consider this problem to enhancing the validity of the finding

Third, in the program offices, there are regularly short-term professors stay for a short time, it is difficult for the researcher to inform to all about the waste separation experiment therefore, the incorrect separation of waste is existed Future research should ensure information is fully covered

Fourth, the explanation of behaviors in the norm activation model (NAM) is limited to internal factors only While, external factors including perceived inconvenient, mistrust, and etc., has strong impacts on the behavior as well Future research should investigate other factors by integrating other variables in the NAM

in order to gain a more complete understanding of individuals environmental concern and waste separation behavior

1.7 Structure and overview of the thesis

This study consists of the following six chapters:

Chapter 1: Introduction – explains the research background and the analytical

framework of the research

Chapter 2: Literature review and theoretical framework – provides the

introduction and theoretical framework for pro-environmental behavior development This chapter reviews some of the classical models for explaining psychological factors affecting pro-environmental behavior An overview of relevant literature on related topics is presented It also discusses the effects of interventions in promoting pro-environmental behaviors The hypotheses then are drawn on

Chapter 3: Research methodology – introduces the general methodology

employed by the study to test the hypotheses Then, research designs and procedures, and data collection and analysis are presented

Chapter 4: Results and Discussions – presents analysis results and discusses the

research findings of the study on how psychological factors can predict waste separation behaviors and the effects of intervention in promoting awareness The reasons for the outcome of the waste separation program in VJU is also addressed It also discusses how pro-environmental behavior could be maintained in a longer term

Chapter 5: Recommendations – proposes implications to facilitate waste separation in

VJU in particular and implications for waste separation in Vietnam in general

Chapter 6: Conclusion – presents the conclusion of the study

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL

FRAMEWORK

2.1 Current waste management practices and challenges in Vietnam

2.2.1 Waste generation in Vietnam

Municipal solid waste (MSW) includes solid wastes generated from households, public areas, commercial areas, construction works, medical establishments and manufacturing establishments in the inner part of the city, waste treatment areas, etc., in which, municipal household accounts for the largest proportion According

to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) (2016), household solid waste in urban areas account for more than 50% of the total volume

of MSW of Vietnam annually, which is generated mainly from households and public areas (streets, markets, malls, offices, research facilities, schools, etc.)

According to MONRE, in 2014, the total volume of municipal household sold waste (MHSW) generated in Vietnam was about 32.000 tons per day The number has increased up to 38.000 tons per day in 2015 (MOC, 2016) Particularly, in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the volume of MHSW was 6.420 tons / day and 6.739 tons / day respectively During the period from 2011 to 2015 the daily volume increased at 12% per year (MOC, 2016) The level of generation of MHSW is predicted to continues to increase in the coming years

MHSW has an organic content of about 54-77%, and recyclable waste (plastic and metal) content of approximately 8-18% (MONRE, 2016) Basically, the composition of household wastes in Vietnam includes inorganic substances (glass, porcelain, metal, paper, rubber, plastic, plastic bags, fabrics, electrical appliances, toys, etc.), organic substances (deciduous plants, deciduous leaves, rotten vegetables, leftovers, animal carcasses, animal dung, etc.) and other substances Currently, plastic bags are an emerging concern in solid waste management due to the using habit of citizens

According to statistics, the rate of hazardous wastes discharged into MHSW brought to dumping sites is 0.02 to 0.82% (MONRE, 2016) Hazardous wastes are being mixed in MHSW including: batteries, tubes, mercury thermometer, detergent packaging, paint cans, vials, hair dye containers, nail polish bottles, insecticide packages, raticide packets, flies/mosquitoes/cockroaches spray bottles, needles and syringes of injecting drug users

2.2.2 Waste collection and treatment

In most urban areas, solid waste collection rates are consistently high and rising annually The average MHSW collection rate is 85% However, the rate of solid waste which received properly treatment and environmental sanitation is relative low

Currently, MHSW disposal methods are mainly open dumping, landfill, and incineration which contain 76-82% of the total collected MSW quantity Most of the landfills have not yet ensured environmental sanitation conditions, many of which are temporary, open landfills, often in an overload condition, without collection systems, waste leachate, etc In addition to official disposal sites, illegal disposal still exists Waste is dumped into rivers, oceans and even in drainage and

on the roadsides Large-scale MSW incinerations have not been invested much in Vietnam yet Some localities invest in small-scale solid waste incinerators which, due to their poor quality control and technical requirements, are seen to be a potential source of secondary pollution due to toxic emissions from burning waste and operating the furnace

The application of resource recycling has not been deployed officially in Vietnam There are only few attempts to practice recycling from informal sectors such as private companies, handicraft villages, and scavengers However, recycling technologies used are mostly outdated and unqualified that can lead to environmental degradation as well as health impact problems (Luong et al., 2013)

2.2.3 The impacts of MHSW

The improper management of MHSW from collecting, transportation, treatment and disposal causing severe environmental pollutions (pollution of soil, water and

air), and health and socio-economic problems At present, in Vietnam, hazardous waste is not collected and treated separately, and mixed with MHSW then dumped

at the landfill The burial and treatment of MHSW and hazardous waste together not only affect the process of decomposing waste, especially when hazardous substances are dissolved into waste leachate, but also cause severe harm to people who contact directly with these wastes In addition, untreated waste brings various pathogens affecting the health of humans and livestock

Furthermore, the problem of waste contamination in gathering yards and transfer stations, or waste stench and leachate from vehicles, garbage transportation is still common in residential areas causing a severely impact on residents‟ daily activities Not only affecting daily life, but waste contamination also creates negative impacts

on the landscape and urban aesthetics These effects then leave bad impression on tourists that reduce the number of visitors Meanwhile, tourism makes up a large portion in revenue in Vietnam According to World Bank (2008) estimation, Vietnam is losing at least $ 69 million in tourism revenue each year due to poor sanitary treatment system (World Bank, 2008)

2.2 Waste separation at source and the role of public participation

Source separation could be the key solution to the sustainable waste management

in Vietnam, since the country has experienced great challenges in dealing with the increasing of solid waste generation and its associated problems, especially when the generation level of MHSW is projected to increase dramatically in the coming years as Vietnam is directing to reach the status of an industrialized country by the year 2020 (Luong et al., 2013) Waste minimization seems to be a great challenge Vietnam has to face in the coming year Source separation can be served as a scientific method which can reduce waste while preserve the limited resources at the same time

The concept of waste separation is not unfamiliar to Vietnamese people In fact, separating recyclable waste to sell for money has been practiced by Vietnamese households before Moreover, during the period of 2006 to 2009, there was a 3Rs

(reduce, reuse and recycle) project deployed in Hanoi The project was funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in the cooperation with Hanoi City Urban Environmental Company The 3Rs activities including the installment of waste bins, the introduction to the concept of waste separation, environmental education and awareness raising campaigns were deployed in selected districts in Hanoi The project was evaluated to be a success in raising awareness of the residents and increase the waste separation performance significantly (Taniguchi & Yoshida, 2011) However, these positive effects of this project did not last long after it ended due to several reasons, of which low level of public awareness and participations constitute the main part Indeed, this barrier remains the same despite the efforts to implement 3Rs initiatives in other localities

Hence the involvement of publics needs to be realized here since public participation

is critical to the success of any waste separation programs (Pakpour et al., 2014) Especially, MHSW makes up the largest part of the waste generation, thus the participant of households is strongly required By understanding what drives people to perform waste separation behavior, interventions can be drawn on to maximize the cooperation of people to achieve an effective and sustainable program

2.3 The role of higher education institution in waste separation

Waste separation behavior and public participation seem to change toward positive when people are aware of the benefits and the method of sorting waste (Guerero et al., 2013) Thus, education is seen to be an important tool to encourage people in solving the waste problems To achieve public consciousness

on environmental issues, universities and schools are usually proposed to be a testing ground for formulating solutions to address these issues since they are principle sources of knowledge and culture (Lambert, 2018) Also, being the role model in the community, university can act as a leader in performing its responsibility to the social and environment (Zhang et al., 2011), therefore university campuses have been chosen to play the leading role in waste separation

by many researchers Additionally, university participants possess the potential to

be the forerunner in waste separation, since this group have a developed awareness about surrounding environment resulting in better understanding of proper waste separation processes and being open to new concept of environmental sustainability (Wang et al., 2012; Kelly et al., 2006) University students are those whose influences can shape the future society, hence their waste separation behavior will have significant impacts on their parents‟ generation as well as their children‟s generation (Wang et al., 2012; Michele et al., 2004) With the environmental friendliness of itself, a university can spread a positive image to society (Noeke, 2000)

As a result, this study chooses Vietnam Japan University (VJU) as a case study

to initiate a waste separation program Since VJU is considered as an international environment, where innovative thinking with an aim for sustainable development is promoted VJU is consider as a pioneer institution in promoting sustainable development in Vietnam through higher education, research and outreach and is committed to becoming a sustainable university By doing this, sustainable development teaching method across all disciplines needs to be acquired, alongside with encouraging as well as disseminating knowledge and research related to sustainable development, building green campuses, providing supports for local sustainability efforts, cooperating and sharing information with international networks (United Nations, 2011) Thus, VJU is considered as

a good environment in which the sustainable concept of waste separation would

be nurtured

2.4 Pro-environmental behavior

With the rapid urbanization, economic growth, the increasing population accompanied by the growing of income, the lifestyles practiced in modern societies have placed a number of negative influence on the environment To deal with this problem, pro-environment behavioral change is considered as the key factor that should be emphasized in environmental policy as well as environmental psychology (Sawitri et al., 2015) “Pro-environmental behavior is conscious actions performed

by an individual so as to lessen the negative impact of human activities on the

environment or and to enhance the quality of the environment” (Jensen, 2002) In this sense, waste separation is a kind of pro-environmental behavior, thus it is

crucial to understand and examine the factors that influence such behaviors to promote sustainable waste separation system

2.5 Widely-used theories to explain pro-environmental behavior

A wide range of theories and models has been applied in the domain of environmental behaviors investigation It can be fairly said that the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the norm activation model (NAM) are the most used theoretical approaches in the pro-environmental behaviors research The following section explains the characteristics of each model

pro-The pro-Theory of Planned Behavior

Being one of the most popular theories in predicting pro-environmental behaviors, TBP (Ajzen 1985), was originally derived from the theory of reasoned action (Fishbein

& Ajzen, 1975) TBP can be classified as an approach based on self-interest and reasoned action in which behavior intention is determined by factors as behavioral beliefs, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control (PBC) TBP assumes the proximal predictor of behavior is behavior intention, which in turn is influenced by (1) attitude toward the behavior involving beliefs of possible consequences created by the behavior (behavioral beliefs), (2) reference individual‟s/group‟s normative expectation regarding the behavior (subjective norm), and (3) the extent to which individual considers potential impediments/obstacles needed to undertake the behavior (perceived behavioral control)

Perceived behavioral control can influence either individual‟s behavioral intention or his or her final behavior through behavior intention, since individual could intent to behave in a certain way but end up doing differently due to some of reasons that make he or she being unable to behave in that way (Ajzen, 1985, 1991) TBP emphasizes the behavior that individual takes into consideration the

signification of benefit and cost to make a decision that brings the most positive consequences out of other options

Many studies have applied the TBP in investigating pro-environmental behavior, including recycling behavior (Cheung et al., 1999; Kelly et al., 2006; Rise et al., 2003), and green consumption behavior (Heath & Gifford, 2002; Bamberg et al., 2003; Nguyen & Ho, 2014)

The Norm Activation Model

Another most influential model explaining how and which factors affect environmental behavior is the norm activation model (NAM) developed

pro-by Schwartz (1977) NAM includes three types of variables including personal norm, awareness of consequences and ascription of responsibility to predict pro-environmental behavior According to Schwartz, personal norm is the central course, which is defined as intrinsically motivated self-expectations regarding morally appropriate behaviors Norm activation generates a feeling of personal obligation to perform a specific behavior (Brennan et al., 2014) Awareness of consequences (AC) defines the level of understanding of individual‟s consequences on others or things that one values relating to an action Ascription of responsibility (AR) is described as the level at which individual feels responsible for the consequences of

an action

The NAM is seen to be generated into two general models (Steg & de Groot, 2010) The first model begins with problem awareness (AC), then ascribe a sense of responsibility which then affects personal norm that directly influences pro-environmental behavior (Onwezen et al., 2013) The second model is described as both problem awareness and ascription of responsibility directly impact personal norm, which then influences pro-environmental behavior (Steg & de Groot, 2010) The first model interpretation, however, is strongly supported by results reported by Steg and de Groot (2010), which is in line with Schwartz and Howard's (1981) original proposed model The first model is considered as „theoretically most plausible‟, since an individual tends to be aware of the consequences of personal

behavior before feeling responsible for it, and this responsibility feeling activates personal norm which then influences the individual‟s pro-environmental behavior

Figure 2.1 The Norm activation model (NAM)

Various studies have been carried out employing the NAM model to predict environmental behavior, such as yard burning (Liere & Dunlap, 1978), recycling (Hopper & Nielsen, 1991), energy consumption behavior (Van der Werff & Steg, 2015), travel mode choice behavior (Hunecke et al., 2001), and car use (Klöckner & Matthies, 2009)

pro-Though NAM and TPB share relative supports from empirical results, different frameworks are employed for each to explain human behaviors The TBP is used to explain ethical behavior based on self-interest motives, whilst the NAM is confined

to altruistic and environmentally friendly behavior involving pro-social motives As interpreted above, the two models possess their own strength making each being optimal in certain cases

2.6 Theoretical framework: Schwartz’s Norm-Activation Model

The risen of public concern to environmental issues clearly has brought changes

to the norm supporting environmental quality (Albrecht & Mauss, 1975) These changes in turn, have certain impacts on behaviors related to environmental concern

It either supports the behaviors regarding environmental conservation or rejects the behaviors which are the cause to environmental degradation (Liere & Dunlap, 1978) Clearly, environmental relevant behaviors are regulated by moral norm where people decided it is wright or wrong to perform a certain behavior (Thergersen, 2005) To the extent of environmental concern, the strength of moral norm seems to

be the determinant driving environmental behaviors Vaske et al (1994) claimed that “norms exist throughout society and often end up being legal mandates for

Awareness of

concequences

Ascription of responsibility

Personal

noncompliance” Thus, it can be fairly said that, norms are expected to be activated

in order to influence environmental behavior The potential of a normative framework needs to be fully addressed Especially, in the case in which the presence of environmental norms is not widespread, the initiation of awareness of the existence of a new norm is of utmost importance in governing individuals to behave following that norm The application of normative framework as NAM which proposes norms is activated by awareness of consequences (AC) and acceptance of responsibility (AR), could be useful in addressing this situation In the conditions of high AC and AR, individuals‟ concern is quickly drawn into the emergence of such norms (Liere & Dunlap, 1978)

Given the fact that, waste separation concept is not new in Vietnam, but its approach is not widely held, it may be the norms on waste issues and waste separation that have been limited Hence the existence of such norm needs to be activated in order to increase the waste separation behavior Those policies and strategies to promote environmental friendly behavior, following the conceptualization of the NAM suggested by Van der Werff and Steg (2014), address a need to focus on enhancing general awareness of environmental problems caused by environmentally unfriendly behavior and strengthening the extent to which people feel they can contribute to solving these problems The individuals‟ feelings of moral obligation in turn is strengthened to provoke pro-environmental behaviors, as a result, promoting pro-environmental actions

The application of the NAM model will support the study in investigating users‟ attitudes and behaviors towards waste separation Specifically, the mediation model

is employed as the basic framework to conduct the survey and the experimental toward examining waste separation behavior

To develop effective strategies to encourage separating waste it is important to understand which factors influence waste separation behavior According to NAM, individuals are more likely to separate waste when they feel morally obliged to do

so, in other words, when they experience a strong personal norm to waste separation

A strong personal norm will motivate personal intrinsically to act toward environmental behavior despite the act might be costly, but by pursuing that act it makes them feel good about themselves (Van der Werff et al., 2013) Since separating waste is considered to encounter a conflict between personal interests and collective interests Separating waste is beneficial for environment, but causing the discomfort for individual Therefore, when a behavior is costly, people tend to base on their personal norm to prompt out the act (Keizer et al., 2014)

pro-According to NAM, there are two factors that affect the activation of personal norms to encourage the act of separating waste First, the person must have the awareness that waste issues cause several environmental problems (awareness of consequences) That means the individual should be aware of the environmental problems caused by waste issues (awareness of consequences) That is, they should acknowledge that waste generation leads to environmental problems such as pollutions Second, people should have the feeling that they are responsible for solve these problems by changing their behavior (ascription of responsibility) That

is, they should realize that environmental problems can be solved if they would change their waste separation behavior toward pro-environmental behavior

2.7 Intervention strategy to change pro-environmental behavior

Associating with rapid occurrence of global environmental stresses, the need to change individual behaviors toward improving environmental quality is emphasized The use of intervention techniques in promoting pro-environmental behavior change has been investigated in considerable research in the past few decades, and their effectiveness has been confirmed Different behaviorists might organize intervention techniques into different intervention strategies Specifically, intervention techniques can range from information (prompts, modeling, feedback, education, etc.), positive motivation (incentives, commitment, social support, etc.),

to coercion (social pressure, legal mandates, etc.) This classification of intervention

is proposed by De Young (1993) based on the review of previous study on behavior change techniques It depends on the desired outcome as well as characteristics of

target population to decide the type of intervention (Bloom & Novelli, 1981; Geller, 1989) In addition, the costs to conduct an intervention strategy constitute a large part in deciding which type of intervention and how it should be implemented (Schultz et al., 1995) Based on these criteria, the study take into consideration the intervention technique of information owing to these following reasons:

First, regarding the purpose of the study which emphasize the need to activate awareness of the existence of new norms to influence pro-environmental behavior as waste separation behavior, information techniques seem to meet the requirement Vining

& Ebreo (1992) claim that information is one the widely-used tools to increase problem awareness resulting in the change of individual behavior The goal of information intervention placed in enlightening people the nature of environmental issues they are facing, what kind of behavior change people need to pursuit to solve the problem, as well

as how to perform such behavior in a proper way (De Young, 1993) The effectiveness

of an intervention might be taken into considered when there the availability of information is (Bartram, 2009) The information technique suggests that once people acknowledge the reason to change and the way to perform the target behavior, they are more likely to take action afterword (De young et al., 1993)

Secondly, an example of specific technique which is commonly employed in order to accomplish the goal of information intervention would be prompts In term

of cost-effectiveness, prompt is considered as one of the simplest and least expensive techniques among other intervention Prompts provide information on the relevant of target behavior to the environmental problem or on the intervention program itself The provided information can be in form of a fact, persuasion, motivation or simply reminder Prompts can take a wide range of forms from visual (signs, posters, flyers, etc.) to verbal (telephone, in person) The effectiveness of prompts has been tested by various research Luyben (1980) suggested that a simple use of letter prompt was effective in changing behavior toward energy conservation Studies conducted by Jacob & Bailey (1982), Burn & Oskamp (1986), and Burn (1991) stated that a single use of prompts could increase recycling behavior

Prompts appear to be an effective technique in term of cost and behavior change Geller et al (1982), Horsely (1988) and Austin et al (1993) suggested that, prompts work best when the provided information specify clear action and is tailored to individuals, and when prompts are placed in close proximity to the location where individuals can perform the target behavior

2.8 Hypothesis

The study utilizes the NAM model to investigate the attitudes and behaviors of VJU campus users toward waste separation in order to find solutions to promote waste separation behavior The relationship between psychological factors in the NAM is examined to explain the occurrence of waste separation Moral norm is considered as the core of the model in which if the awareness of its existence is promoted, there is high chance the behavior change, in turn, is influenced The intervention technique that is success at raising awareness on environmental problem, is considered to change the attitudes and beliefs of individual about this problem, consequently, making that individual behave in the expected way (Gray & Weigel, 1985) Such technique can encounter the information techniques (e.g prompts) which are considered to be effective in promoting pro-environmental behavior change Drawing on the findings in the literature, this study was empirically set out following hypotheses and tests:

H1: Psychological factors including awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility and personal norm influence waste separation behavior

H2: Awareness promotion (in the form of prompts) enhances campus users‟ waste separation at source

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Research approach and methodology framework

In order to answer the research questions and examine the hypothesis, the study employs a mixed method approach to gather qualitative and quantitative data In the quantitative method, a waste separation initiatives were used to examine the waste separation behaviors and environmental attitudes of the university campus users The results were obtained through waste separation performance audits and questionnaire survey distribution Waste separation performance audits including waste composition analysis, field observations and fieldwork records which are used to assess the actual behaviors of the students and staff members Also, the survey is designed to ascertain people‟s attitudes, knowledge and self-reported behavior regarding waste separation practice In the qualitative method, multiple sources of data including documents, archival records, interview were recruited to get an insightful view of waste separation practice and approach to promote this pro-environmental behavior

3.2 Study site

Located in Hanoi city, the capital of Vietnam, VJU is a new institution established within four years Being newly established, VJU is still a small-scale campus temporarily placed in a building of other education institution It

is plant to move to Hoa Lac campus which is located in the suburban area of Hanoi, within a few years after the finishing of construction of the new campus The current campus of VJU has been put into used for two years The physical infrastructure of VJU includes three office and classroom floors Waste generation is primarily from these three areas A mixed waste collection system was deployed on campus, where students and staff members discard waste into

a one-bin system without separation Waste from bins is collected and temporarily stored at a campus-based transfer station before being sent for final disposal at landfills There is an informal step in waste collection in VJU that is

the sorting of waste for recycling A small portion of the recyclables including paper and plastic bottles and cans, is sorted and sold by the janitor staffs to earn extra income This basic waste management have not shown any signs of upgrading to a new system of waste separation or utilization in the campus yet

3.3 Questionnaire survey design

3.3.1 Questionnaire respondents sample

The sample of questionnaire survey consisted of 120 respondents The questionnaires were only distributed to the members of VJU frequently working and studying at the university, including staff members, second intake students and some of the first intake students who attend their labs at a regular basis Table 3.1 describes the demographic characteristics of the respondents

The sample profile shows that 46.67% of the respondents are male and 53.33 percent are female Survey respondents consist of 79 students, 13 teaching staffs and 28 administrators The majority of respondents is Vietnamese nationality (88.33%), while Japanese respondents only accounts for 11.67 percent

Table 3.1 Demographic of survey respondents

Administrative staff member 28 23.33

3.3.2 Questionnaire design

A self-report questionnaire was carried out to assess the variables in NAM

model including awareness of consequence, ascription of responsibility, personal norm and behavior The questionnaire items were developed from

previous research related to waste separation and recycling behavior The questionnaire was organized into four main parts

The first part presents items that are used to measure the variable awareness of consequence of the model To assess general awareness of respondents on waste

issues, two items which were similar to those of Vassanadumrongdee & Kittipongvises (2017), and Wan et al (2012), were employed These are whether Vietnam is facing with waste problem that will affect the environment and human health, and whether waste separation is an important step in dealing with waste problem Respondents were also asked about awareness on the waste separation in VJU which acquired three items related to the benefit of waste separation to VJU, and the important of oneself in the waste separation in VJU The respondents were asked to indicate their agreement with the given statements using a 5-point Likert scale, where the responses ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) The second part also divided into two set of items to collect data on the variable

ascription of responsibility One set consisted of questions revised from Gärling et

al (2003), which are related to everyone‟s responsibility in undertaking waste separation in general The other set included questions on VJU members‟ responsibility and VJU‟s responsibility as a whole toward waste separation A 5-point Likert scale in which the responses ranged from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5), was also employed in this part

The third part included a set of items to collect data relating to personal norm

Personal norm was measured by using the scale developed by Park and Ha (2014) Respondents were asked whether they should support the waste separation program

in VJU or should separate waste correctly for other to follow, and whether they are willing to put extra effort into separating waste For each item, the respondents were

asked to demonstrate their level of agreement with the given statement on a 5-point Likert scale in which the responses ranged from strongly disagree (1) and neutral (3) to strongly agree (5)

The fourth part collected data on waste separation behavior The respondents

were asked “How often have you separated waste at home and at VJU?” during a period of time of before and after the waste separation program implemented in VJU A 6-pont Likert scale was used here to rate from never (1) to very frequently (6) Respondents also were asked about the level of correct waste separation in VJU using a 5-point Likert scale to range from not at all (1) to very much (5)

Additional space was given in the survey for the respondents to make written comments and suggestions also

To warrant the validity of the questionnaires, the draft version of each wave questionnaire was tested two times before distributing to all participants The drafts were conducted to receive feedbacks from professors, administrators and students

on whether there are unclear and difficult to understand about the questionnaires Based on these feedbacks, the questionnaires were revised and finally delivered to the participants Plus, the questionnaires were designed in colorful in order to get attraction from the respondents and somehow increase the level of interested in taking part in the survey

3.3.3 Data collection

The waste separation survey was first introduced and explained its purpose continuously by distributing information door-to-door The questionnaires were distributed door-to-door as well For teaching and administrative staffs, the researcher was taken by the administrator who is the coordinator of the study to each office room to distribute the questionnaires The administrator again represented the purpose of the survey and asked for the cooperation from the staffs For the students, the researcher checked for the schedule of each program and noted the days when there were classes available The researcher then went to each classroom to distribute the hard copy of the questionnaires and again explained the

purpose of the study and asked for the cooperation from the students The researcher then came back to each room after the respondents completed the questionnaires and collected them The same procedure was applied for the second and third wave survey Distributing the hard copy of questionnaires door-to-door was more effectively in this case since asking for the student and satff email account provided by the university was denied for its confidential Besides, students rarely check this university mail account Hence, conducting online survey might not receive enough responses

The three times questionnaire survey were conducted during a five weeks period from early March to early April, 2018 The returning rate of the paper-based questionnaire survey was 120 out of 154 questionnaires were returned

To test the H1: Psychological factors including awareness of consequence, ascription of responsibility, personal norm influence waste separation behavior, the survey data including ascription of responsibility, personal norm, behavior were analyzed using structural equation model (SEM) by Stata 13

3.4 The experimental intervention design

were explained to gain the approval After obtaining the permission, field observation was conducted to check the condition of waste handling system and physical features of the building of VJU

As discussed in the study site part, a mixed waste collection system is applied in VJU and there is unofficial recycling channel from the janitor by sorting the recycle items as paper, plastics bottle, can and metal box to sell to the collector for money

In fact, this activity is quite popular in Vietnam, especially among households Based on this feature, an attempt to employ the idea into the waste separation program was conducted, by dividing the waste into three types for separation 1) Type one includes all type of paper (writing paper, paper box, carton box, wrapping paper etc.) except for tissue and toilet paper

2) Type two includes plastic botlle, can and metal box

3) Type three includes the other wastes

Three floors of the campus building were used in this study: one floor is used for class rooms only, one floor for office rooms, library, canteen and common room for both student and staff, and the other floor for office rooms only Being permitted by the university, the three designated bins for three types of separation wastes were placed in the hallway of each floor and the study also utilized the available bins in each rooms for containing the type three of waste

Figure 3.1 Waste separation bins in the hallway

Figure 3.2 Waste separation bins in class/office room

3.4.2 The poster designs for intervention

Guideline posters

The guideline posters for waste separation were designed into two types: 1) the graphic type placed on the waste bins and on the wall of the hallway above the bins (see Figure 3.3), 2) the text type which were placed on the hallway‟s wall, provided details on how to separate waste Both types were written in English and Vietnamese (Figure 3.4) The guideline posters were revised one time after receiving feedbacks form the participants in order for a better understanding

Figure 3.3 The separation bin posters

Figure 3.4 The separation guideline poster Motivation posters

Being employed as an intervention technique, the motivation posters were

designed with the purpose to raise awareness and consciousness of all members to promote their waste separation behavior Since posters are seen to be useful communication tools to spread information quickly and build awareness (Ladd, A

D, 2010) The posters design followed the KISS principle, a design principle noted

by the U.S Navy in 1960, stands for “keep it simple and straightforward” with a headline, offer and call to action Straightforward here means a single purpose for using a poster needs to be determined and ensure that every element on the page supports that idea The simple principle requires a short motivating message with minimum reading should be conveyed in each poster Ideally, there should be fewer than 50 words on the entire poster

This design principle was employed to meet the requirement at the time when participants showed minimum attention to follow the detail guideline posters since they addressed there were too much words and it costs time to read Hence, the posters used in this study were designed as less words as possible, and use the graphic mainly to attract people attentions The graphic poster was designed to highlight the incorrect behavior of separating waste The message of the poster was supposed to impact on the consciousness of people to change the incorrect behavior This message was conveyed through the illustrated pictures of a sad and cry face trash bin which contains a mixture of type of wastes, and a happy face bin containing the separated waste, and a slogan “Change your mind, you change the world” The other poster which contained words only, conveyed a positive and call

to action message The posters highlighted the benefits brought by waste separation with the slogan “For a clean environment and a green future Let‟s separate waste!” (see Figure 3.5)

Figure 3.5 The promotion posters

3.4.3 The experiment procedures

The experiment took place at VJU over five weeks divided into three periods The first week of the study was the baseline period when no intervetions were offered During this period, waste composition analysis and field observation were carried out for three days After recieving the approval of the study proposal from the university, the coordinator staff of this study sent an email to all the satff members to introduce and explain the purpose and procedures of the experiment, and ask for their cooperation For the students, the researcher chose the Japanese class when all students garthered to introduce and explain about the experiment, and asked for their cooperation The introduction and explaination were repeated when the researcher distributed the questionnaires door-to-door Also, posters introducing the study were placed in each hallway‟s bulletin board and each classroom The first wave questionnaire survey were distributed at this stage

The next two weeks of the study were second period when the intervention was occurred Three designated waste bins were installed in each hall way of the three floors The guideline posters then were stuck on the bins and the walls, as well as on each bin in each classroom and office room (see Figure 3.1&3.2) Fieldwork records on the waste separation performance data were conducted in ten days (every week day for two weeks) The record activity was carried out in the early morning concurrently with daily waste collection since the researcher was not allowed to

enter the office room alone to check the garbage The second wave questionnaire survey was distrusted at the end of this stage

The second two weeks were the third period when the intervention of promotion posters was piled on These promotion posters were placed next to the separation bins

in each hallway, and stuck on the door of each class room and office room The waste separation performance record activity was hold the same as the second period The third and final questionnaire survey was distributed at the end of this stage

3.4.4 Participants

The experiment took place at all three floors campus of VJU, hence the participants are those who currently working and studying in VJU including students, administrative staffs, teaching staffs and lecturers who are just attending VJU for a short period of time There is a great deal of active interactions between students, administrative staffs and teaching staffs since VJU is a small scale campus and has no separated areas for different departments

3.4.5 Data collection

Fieldwork records on waste separation performance was conducted by measuring the waste generation from the study‟s campus buildings for four weeks The researcher observed and recorded the volume of each type of waste bin and the percentage of mix waste in each bin The record time was from 7am every day, the same time with the daily waste collection The data record was hold by the researcher throughout the experiment

3.4.6 Data analysis

To test H2: “Awareness promotion can increase campus users‟ waste separation

at source”, a paired t-test was employed to elucidate the different in waste separation performance of participants The record data of correct waste percentage

of the second and third period was computed into t-test to test whether the percentage increase or not after the intervention of promotion posters Also, the data

on opinions of participants about the posters form the third wave questionnaire survey was analyzed for supplementary explanation

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 Results

4.1.1 Questionnaire data results

Table 4.1 shows the mean and standard deviation values for responses in each item of the questionnaire survey The first impression from the result is that the means of each item in the behavior category were extremely low compared to other constructs While the means were quite equal among other constructs Correlation coefficients of all included constructs are presented in Table 4.2 These correlation coefficients show that all constructs were substantively and positively related except for behavior variables The behavior-home variable has insignificant and positive correlations with awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility and personal norm variables (r ≥ 0.00, p>0.1) Whilst, behavior-VJU variable has insignificant and negative correlations with awareness of consequences, ascription

of responsibility and personal norm variables (r ≤ -0.01, p > 0.1)

These results were withdrawn from the first wave questionnaire data when there was not waste separation program installed in VJU yet Hence, there was little or no opportunities for the participants to be able to perform waste separation That might explain for the low interaction rate of behavior variable with other factors

Table 4.1 Summary statistics of the NAM items

Awareness of concequences

General awareness on waste and environmental issues:

Vietnam is facing with waste problem that will affect the environment and human health 4.53 0.87 Waste separation is an important step in dealing with waste problem to protect the

Awareness on waste separation at VJU:

Waste separation can create a sustainable environment in VJU 4.37 0.81 Waste separation can contribute to build positive reputation to VJU 4.19 0.82

An act of waste separating of yours can spread positive effects to other VJU members

and to the community as a whole 4.13 0.79

Ascription of responsibility

Responsibility for waste separation in general:

Undertaking waste separation is everyone’s responsibility 4.31 0.96 Responsibility for waste separation in VJU:

Every VJU members should be responsible for undertaking waste separation 4.35 0.75 VJU should make waste separation as an official rule in order for making everyone

separate waste 4.01 1.02 Every VJU members should be responsible for making waste separation become an

organization culture of VJU 4.31 0.79

Personal norm

I should separate waste correctly inorder for other to follow 4.29 0.80

Im willing to put extra effort into separating waste 4.05 0.87

I should support the waste separation program in VJU 4.33 0.86

Behaviour

How often do you separate waste at home? 2.85 1.57 How often do you separaet waste in VJU? 2.53 1.47

Table 4.2 Correlations coefficients of the variables of the model

0.04

-0.0

3

0.05