Assessing Household's Municipal Waste Segregation Intentions in Metropolitan Cities of Pakistan: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach

There is a growing concern about inappropriate waste disposal and its negative impact on human health and the environment. The objective of this study is to understand household waste segregation intention considering psychological, institutional, and situational factors simultaneously. Insights into the motivations of household waste segregation drivers may assist in a better knowledge of how to pursue the most efficient and effective initiatives. For this purpose, data from a representative sample comprising 849 households is obtained from the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi (Pakistan). The empirical analysis employs a Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach, showing that policy instruments have significant direct and indirect impacts on households' segregation intentions. The results highlight that government policy instruments strengthen personal and perceived norms for waste segregation intentions, resulting in an external intervention that would encourage intrinsic motivation. Therefore, policy actions become the main entry point for initiating waste segregation behavior. Public policy must continue to emphasize waste segregation since it may help resource recovery. This is imperative because the environment is a shared resource, and its conservation increases social welfare.

How smart technology empowers consumers in smart retail stores? The perspective of technology readiness and situational factors

Smart retail stores have been gaining momentum in smart retailing. Instead of relying on in-store staff like traditional counterparts, smart retail stores provide an unmanned environment purely enabled by various in-store smart technologies that support customers throughout the shopping journey. This unstaffed operating model also enables smart retail stores to provide competitive prices by reducing labor costs. However, studies have overemphasized the unique value offered by smart technology but discounted the common value strengthened in smart retail. This study applies the situational factor framework to identify both unique and common factors empowered by smart technology from a comprehensive perspective; then, technology readiness is incorporated to explore consumer purchase intentions in smart retail stores. A total of 283 survey data were collected and analyzed. The main results indicate that most situational factors have a direct effect on purchase intention, and technology readiness enhances the unique situational factors enabled directly by smart technology.

Toward understanding nurses' decisions whether to miss care: A discrete choice experiment

BACKGROUND

Studies of missed nursing care suggest that it results from ward-level, patient-related, and task-type factors, while nurses' decision-making style was scarcely studied. Studying the effect of nurses' decision-preference structures, namely a pattern of joint ward and patient factors, on missed care may also contribute to understanding the phenomenon.

OBJECTIVES

To examine the relationships between decision-preference structures and missed care and the moderating effects of decision-making styles and task type in these links.

DESIGN

A discrete choice experiment with a between- and within-participants design.

PARTICIPANTS

A sample of 387 registered nurses working in acute medical surgical wards in Israel.

METHODS

Based on the protocol for discrete choice experiments, a survey was developed to assess the decision-preference structure, considering five factors: overload, presence of head nurse, clinical complexity, difficult patient, and presence of relatives. Participants were randomly assigned to four task-type conditions and completed a survey regarding their task. Decision-making style was assessed using a validated questionnaire.

RESULTS

Extensive workload (b = -0.46; p = 0.001), difficult patient (b = -0.20; p = 0.001), and patient clinical complexity (b = -0.10; p = 0.006) were negatively linked to the probability of missed care. The interaction between workload and task type (b = 0.252; p = 0.017) indicated that the probability of missed care under extensive compared with regular workload was lowest for developing a discharge plan and highest for providing emotional support. The interaction of patient complexity and task type (b = 0.230; p = 0.013) indicated that the probability of missed care in developing a discharge plan and medication administration was lower for patients having high compared with low clinical complexity. The interaction between difficult patient and task type (b = -0.219; p = 0.044) indicated that the probability of missed care in emotional support, developing a discharge plan, and patient's mobility was lower for difficult than for non-difficult patients. Finally, the interaction between workload and decision-making style (b = -0.48; p = 0.001) indicated that the probability of missed care under heavy compared with regular workloads was lower for the dual-preference or the dominantly intuitive styles.

CONCLUSIONS

This design enabled examining the prioritizing processes nurses use when deciding about whether to miss care. The likelihood of missing more in structured tasks is lower under a heavy overload and when patients appear difficult or clinically complex. Dual-preference styles or dominantly intuitive styles are more suitable for the routine high workload.

Understanding the relationship between air traffic noise exposure and annoyance in populations living near airports in France

Since the 2000s, increased aircraft noise annoyance has been observed in the populations living near airports. The DEBATS-study compared the exposure-response relationship estimated among airports' residents in France with old and new EU standard curves. It also examines whether non-acoustical factors may explain this annoyance. For 1244 adults living near three French airports, information about demographic and socio-economic factors as well as aircraft noise annoyance, situational, personal and attitudinal factors was collected with a face-to-face questionnaire. Outdoor aircraft noise exposure was estimated by linking home address to noise exposure maps. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between annoyance and a broad range of other variables in addition to the L_den. Severe noise annoyance was associated not only with increased aircraft noise levels, but also with non-acoustical factors. Annoyance was higher than predicted by the old EU standard curve when estimated with the model including non-acoustical factors in addition to the L_den. It was even higher when only noise exposure was considered. However, annoyance was lower in DEBATS than predicted by the new EU standard curve provided by WHO. The increase of noise annoyance does not seem to be explained by the factors already mentioned in the literature as possible explanations. However, it cannot be ruled out that methodological differences in the HA assessment may be the reason for changes in annoyance over the years. For this reason, we argue for a definition of HA derived substantially as recommended by ICBEN. The findings of the DEBATS study also confirm that taking into account non-acoustical factors such as situational, personal and attitudinal factors would improve annoyance predictions.

I cannot live without air conditioning! The role of identity, values and situational factors on cooling consumption patterns in India

As the world continues to deal with climate-induced heat events, sustainable energy behaviours, or lifestyles combined with non-behavioural interventions have been identified as crucial pathways to curb the demand for air conditioners. Typically, ecological communities serve as a reference point for sustainable lifestyles as they have strong environmental self-identity and values and are more likely to further engage in pro-environmental and energy-saving actions. Yet, it is unknown if individuals within these communities will act as expected, especially when confronted with extreme climatic challenges like heatwaves. It is also unclear which factors will define individual responses to these challenges. Utilising environmental self-identity and Value-Belief-Norm theories, this paper examines factors underlying cooling consumption behaviours of households living in a Universal Community with strong environmental world views in India. Twenty in-depth qualitative interviews with residents, thematically analysed, found that while people expressed strong environmental self-identity, preferences for air conditioner use was often mediated by hedonic factors such as comfort and sleep. Moral norms played a positive role in how people operated their air conditioners. Yet, when faced with the choice of using energy-efficient air conditioners, biospheric concern was of limited importance while situational factors like cost and functionality were more pivotal. The above results raise interesting questions around the difficulties that might emerge in changing preferences around air conditioning behaviours in non-environmental communities, especially, if environmentally conscious communities which are expected to be "the locus of change for energy efficiency actions" are significantly influenced by hedonic values.

Factors influencing the choice of beer: A review

Research on those variables that have been shown to influence the consumer's choice of beer is reviewed. The focus is on the choice of whether to drink beer as opposed to a beverage from another category, and to a greater extent, the choice between different types or styles of beer. Inspired by previous research on a diverse array of factors that have been shown to influence food and beverage choice, the review examines how beer choice is driven by consumer variables (covering biological, psychological, and socio-cultural factors), product-intrinsic attributes (the sensory aspects of the beer itself), product-extrinsic attributes (external sensory characteristics, such as packaging), and contextual and environmental influences. These situational factors refer to variables such as the location where choice/consumption takes place (i.e., on- versus off-trade), as well as the context, occasion, and reason for drinking. Current trends related to choice and consumption, such as the emerging interest in beer-food pairing, are also examined. The review groups these attributes which affect people's beer wanting, choice, and purchase in order to understand the beer consumer's choice process. Along with general conclusions, a number of key directions for future research are also presented, given that the relative contribution of each type of factor on consumer's choice behaviour is still unclear.

Eating occasion situational factors and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption in young adults

Background

Young adulthood represents an influential transitional period marked by poor dietary habits and excess weight gain. Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) are a major source of excess caloric intake among young adults, yet little is known about the correlates of SSB consumption. This study examines the individual and situational correlates of SSB consumption, using real-time assessment of Australian young adults’ eating occasions.

Methods

Dietary, sociodemographic and health behaviour data were collected during the Measuring EAting in Everyday Life (MEALS) study (n = 675 adults, 18–30 y). Participants reported all foods and beverages consumed over 3–4 non-consecutive days using a real-time Smartphone food diary application (“FoodNow”). For every eating occasion, food and beverage intake was recorded along with situational characteristics (eating location, purchase location, presence of others and activities while eating). A beverage occasion was defined as any eating occasion where a beverage was consumed and a SSB occasion was defined as any eating occasion where a SSB was consumed. Multilevel logistic regression was used to examine individual and situational characteristics with SSB intake at beverage occasions (i.e. factors associated with choosing a SSB over other non-alcoholic beverages) and to examine factors associated with consuming a SSB at any occasion where food and/or beverages were consumed.

Results

Thirty-five percent of participants consumed SSBs during the recording period (n = 237). Of the 2185 beverage eating occasions reported by SSB consumers, 481 (20%) contained a SSB. SSB were rarely consumed on their own (i.e. other foods were present). Having a lower than tertiary education (odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.53 [1.16, 2.01]; p < 0.01); eating in a café/restaurant, compared to at home (3.02 [1.58, 5.78]; p < 0.001), and purchasing beverages from a convenience outlet, compared to a supermarket/grocery store (4.58 [2.85, 7.38]; p < 0.001) were associated with SSB intake at beverage eating occasions. Similar associations were also found when all food and/or beverage eating occasions were examined.

Conclusion

In this study, SSB were often consumed with other foods and intake was associated with individual and situational factors. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings and explore how SSB are consumed in relation to their accompanying foods.

Factors contributing to homicide-suicide: differences between firearm and non-firearm deaths

The primary aim of this study is to determine the relationship between situational factors, method of death, and homicide-suicide deaths, specifically comparing method of death (firearm vs. nonfirearm) across these factors. We used data from the national violence death reporting system, a reporting system for violent deaths that links data from multiple sources. We included incidents that involved at least one homicide death followed by perpetrator suicide in the 42 states from 2013 to 2016. In addition to univariate analyses, we compared proportions of incidents that included a firearm to non-firearm incidents by incident, victim, and perpetrator characteristics. By far, firearm-related injuries were the most frequent cause of death for victims (85.6%) and for perpetrators (89.5%). Women, Hispanic individuals, individuals with a current mental health issue, and individuals with recent depression symptoms had lower odds of using a firearm, as did perpetrators who killed both an intimate partner and other family member. Individuals who had recently been in a fight had increased odds of using a firearm. Despite these differences, the overwhelming majority of homicide-suicide deaths involved firearms, which supports the need for adequate, appropriate firearm control measures to prevent these tragedies.

Situational influences on response time and maneuver choice: Development of time-critical scenarios

Findings concerning drivers' response times to sudden events vary considerably across studies due to different experimental setups and situational characteristics, such as expectancy of an event and urgency to react. While response times are widely reported in the literature, understanding of drivers' choice of maneuvers in time-critical situations is limited. Standardized test scenarios could enhance the comparability of studies and help in attaining a better understanding of driver behavior in these situations. In an effort to achieve these improvements, three driving simulator studies (N = 131) were conducted to investigate drivers' response time and maneuver choice under a range of situational conditions. Each study took place in a specific environmental setting (urban, rural, and highway) and incorporated one unexpected and 12 subsequent events (increased expectancy). Four different time-critical scenarios were used to evoke different driver responses. In three scenarios, obstacles suddenly entered the roadway (braking, steering, or both possible). A fourth scenario comprised the sudden braking of a leading vehicle (only braking possible). Half of the drivers performed a cognitive secondary task. To validate the findings, results from an additional field test (N = 14) were compared to the results from the simulated urban environment. As expected, response choice was influenced by scenario characteristics (available braking distance and room for evasive maneuvers). Braking maneuvers were more frequent in settings with lower speed limits (urban) while steering maneuvers were found at higher speed limits (highway). Responses to suddenly appearing obstacles were fastest in the urban setting at 540-680 ms; these responses were 200-300 ms slower in the rural and highway settings. Response times increased by 100-200 ms when drivers responded to braking leading vehicles rather than obstacles. Braking responses were 200-350 ms slower and steering responses were 90-200 ms slower when drivers responded to an unexpected event rather than subsequent events. The cognitive secondary task had no significant effect. The simulated environment and the field test produced comparable response behavior. The current study provides reference numbers that help to establish a set of standardized test scenarios for future studies. On basis of this study, nine scenarios are recommended for the context of time-critical crash avoidance maneuvers. Such standardized test scenarios could improve the comparability of future studies on response time and maneuver choice.

Genital Responses to Rape Vignettes Among Young Men: The Influence of Mood and Directed Attention

Although it is clear that men with a history of sexual assaults against women produce higher relative genital responses to rape vignettes in the laboratory than do men without such a history, it remains unclear what aspects of the vignettes are eliciting these responses, and whether the genital responses are affected by situational factors. The antisocial tendencies hypothesis states that many men are inhibited by cues of violence, suffering, and coercion in rape vignettes, but other men, particularly antisocial and sexually aggressive men, are not so inhibited. In this study, we investigated whether the hypothesized inhibition to rape vignettes among nonoffenders could be affected by manipulation of mood and directed attention. A total of 48 young men were exposed to audio-recorded vignettes describing mutually consenting and nonviolent sexual interactions, mutually consenting and violent sexual interactions, nonconsenting and violent sexual interactions, and nonsexual and nonviolent social interactions (within-subjects). Participants were randomly assigned to a mood manipulation designed to induce a happy, neutral, or sad mood (between-subjects). All were asked to pay attention to either sex words or violent words while listening to the vignettes (within-subjects). As is typically observed, genital responses were lower (inhibited) when vignettes included cues of violence or nonconsent. Both happy and sad mood inductions reduced this inhibition, so that men induced into a happy or sad mood showed greater relative responding to cues of violence or nonconsent compared with men in a neutral mood. The attention manipulation had no significant effect. Results suggest that genital responses to rape cues can be situationally influenced, but not necessarily as predicted by the antisocial tendencies hypothesis.

The effects of situational factors and impulsiveness on drivers' intentions to violate traffic rules: Difference of driving experience

This study aimed to explore the effects of situational variables and impulsiveness on drivers' intentions to violate traffic rules among novice, less experienced and experienced drivers in China. Specifically, eight scenarios with manipulated variables, including time pressures (high and low), descriptive norms (positive and negative) and accident base rates (high and low), were randomly presented to 232 drivers. All independent variables, except the descriptive norm, were between-subjects designs. The results showed that hypothetical high time pressure and unsafe descriptive norm increased drivers' intentions to commit violations, respectively. Moreover, the effects of situational factors and impulsiveness on their intentions to violate traffic rules depended on driving experience. Cognitive impulsiveness predicted the violation intention only of novice drivers, whereas the descriptive norm affected the intention of the remaining two groups. The stated accident base rate moderated the relationship between the descriptive norm and violation intention of experienced drivers, specifically, when the accident base rate was hypothetical high their violation intention relied more on descriptive norms. The results indicated that with increased driving experience, drivers became more sensitive to situational cues, less influenced by individual factors and, correspondingly, more likely to behave in a manner that was congruent with the surrounding situation and individuals. The potential applications for this research are the development of intervention and training programs specifically for drivers with varying levels of driving experience.