Littering is a long prevailing problem all over the world. It causes serious destruction on the environment and gives financial burden to the government, businesses, and communities. According to the study conducted by Jenna Jambeck...
moreLittering is a long prevailing problem all over the world. It causes serious destruction on the environment and gives financial burden to the government, businesses, and communities. According to the study conducted by Jenna Jambeck and her colleagues in 2015, Philippines placed as fourth top contributor of plastic waste in the ocean all over the world. And most of those plastic wastes are litters thrown in the streets, sewages, rivers, or seashores that flush into the ocean during the rainy season. On the other hand, the investigation on the potential causes of this behavior is still limited.
This study was conducted to investigate the possible factors that contribute to the littering attitude of the people in Metro Manila. It may help policy makers and government’s implementing agencies to come up with a best possible solution to the littering problem in the Philippines. Using the Theory of Self-monitoring by Mark Snyder, the researchers tried to explain how people litter. The study also investigated the role of demographics, such as age, sex, and location, in predicting and influencing littering attitude. It was conducted to a total of 150 random participants coming from Bagumbayan, Taguig; Cembo, Makati; and Poblacion, Pateros; utilizing the 18-item Self-monitoring Scale by Gangestad and Snyder to measure self-monitoring, and 24-item Littering Attitude Scale by Oluyinka Ojedokun to measure littering attitude.
Using the multiple linear regression, the study found out that age and gender do not significantly predict littering attitude [R2 = .011, F(2,147) = .843, p > .05]; while self-monitoring, using a separate regression analysis, was proved to have a significant predicting ability on littering attitude [R2 = .031, F(1,148) = 4.71, p < .05]. Other findings of the study using Two-way ANOVA are: Locations significantly affects littering attitude [F(2,144) = 3.08, p < .05]; high and low self-monitors do not differ significantly in their level of littering attitude [F(1,144) = .89, p > .05]; and the interaction of levels of self-monitoring and locations do not affect significantly to littering attitude, [F(2,144) = .44, p > .05]. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings were discussed, and recommendations were as well provided.
KEYWORDS: Littering; Self-monitoring; Age; Sex; Location; Regression Analysis