The Role of Awareness of Consequences in Predicting the Local Tourists’ Plastic Waste Reduction Behavioral Intention: The Extension of Planned Behavior Theory

Abstract

Due to increasing concern about plastic waste and its impact on the ecosystem, it is vital to understand tourists’ behavioral intentions about plastic waste reduction on beaches. There have been several studies that have used the theory of planned behavior to investigate pro-environmental behaviors or intentions, but there are few specific research studies that have extended the theory of planned behavior by adding awareness of consequences to explain the power of behavioral intention. Accordingly, this paper aimed to investigate how awareness of consequences, subjective norms, attitudes, and behavioral control dimensions influence plastic waste behavioral intention on Jeddah’s beaches, in Saudi Arabia. This was performed on a random sample of 390 local tourists in Jeddah city from June to August 2023. A total of 340 of them agreed and answered the questionnaire, yielding a percentage response rate of 87%. This produced 271 valid questionnaires for data analysis after closely examining the survey. A self-complete questionnaire was used for data collection in using multiple statistical analyses to examine the hypotheses. The results demonstrated a positive influence of subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and consequence awareness on environmental behavioral intention. On the other hand, attitude did not significantly contribute to predict environmental behavioral intention. This study’s findings made clear how crucial it is to consider any potential negative effects while making plans to cut down on plastic trash. Educating people about the possible harm that using plastic products on beaches is anticipated to cause to the environment might also be beneficial. It is intended that, through understanding behavior and behavior determinants, governmental bodies, pro-environmental organizations, businesses, and communities will be able to implement appropriate strategies to reduce the use of plastic in Saudi Arabia to protect marine life.