Drivers and Inhibitors of Sustainable Electronic Waste Collection and Disposal Behavioural Intentions in a Developing Country

Abstract

Rapid urbanization has led to the dramatic generation of electronic waste (Ewaste) with societal severe socio-economic and environmental implications. The situation is providing a daunting responsibility for Governments in developing countries in ensuring sustainable E-waste management. Thus, sustainable Ewaste management becomes indispensable, especially when collection and disposal targets are unknown. The study aimed to examine the drivers and inhibitors of sustainable collection and disposal of E-waste in 10 Ugandan cities. Behavioural reasoning theory (BRT) was a theory employed to understand Government employees’ behaviour better and identify the drivers and inhibitors of sustainable E-waste collection and disposal. By way of a questionnaire survey from 346 city employees, data were collected and analysed through the partial least squares structural equation modelling - (PLS-SEM). Results largely support the developed and proposed framework while confirming its robustness in determining sustainable E-waste collection and disposal behavioural intentions. In the BRT context, the study contributes to theory by providing a more comprehensive behavioural understanding of drivers and inhibitors of E-waste collection and disposal based on “reasons against and for” in a sustainable manner. Besides, one of the rarest studies in an E-waste management context manifests the importance of the PLS-SEM approach in successfully analysing two dependent variables. The study provides practical implications and recommendations to all E-waste stakeholders.

Keywords: E-waste, Behavioural reasoning theory, collection, disposal, sustainable, PLS-SEM