Environmental Self-Efficacy, Perceived Community Injunctive Norms, and their Interactive Effects on Recycling Frequency and Waste Segregation Practices among Urban Residents in

Abstract

Research investigated the psychosocial determinants of waste management behaviors among urban residents in selected cities in Southwest Nigeria, amid escalating municipal solid waste challenges driven by rapid urbanization. Using a quantitative cross-sectional survey design and Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) on data from 384 respondents, the research examined the direct and interactive Effects of Environmental Self-efficacy (ESE) and Perceived Community Injunctive norms (PCIN) on Recycling Frequency (RF) and Waste Segregation Practices (WSP). Results revealed significant positive direct effects: ESE strongly predicted RF (β = 0.42, p < .001, the strongest path) and WSP (β = 0.38, p < .001), while PCIN positively influenced RF (β = 0.35, p < .001) and WSP (β = 0.40, p < .001). Significant interaction effects indicated that PCIN moderated and amplified the ESE-behavior relationships (β = 0.18 for RF, p < .001; β = 0.15 for WSP, p < .05). The model showed substantial variance explained (R² ≈ 0.58 for RF; R² ≈ 0.52 for WSP) and good fit. The study recommends integrated interventions: enhancing ESE through education and skill-building, reinforcing PCIN via community campaigns, and providing infrastructure/incentives to bridge intention-behavior gaps for sustainable urban waste management in Nigeria.