Abstract

This study integrates the research on recycling and environmental activism to further verify the relationships between pro-environmental beliefs and engagement in recycling activities. Influences on one’s self-consideration as an environmentalist, time spent on recycling, and knowledge about recycling process were examined. The connotative meanings of recycling-relevant words on waste bin signage—including “incinerator,” “landfill,” and “trash”—were investigated to understand information processing on waste management. Survey results from 451 college students reveal support for models linking overall environmental orientation and the engagement in recycling activities. Specifically, one’s willingness to engage in pro-environmental consumer behaviors positively predicts knowledge about recycling and the time spent on recycling. Perceived level of environmental activism is also associated with one’s self-identification as an environmentalist. Environmental activists were also found to be more sensitive to the value and potency of the recycling-related words, in which “incinerator” was perceived to be the most positive and powerful, followed by “landfill” and “trash.” These findings support an integrative theoretical framework assessing the influence of messaging variables on variegated dimensions of pro-environmental citizenship and can help inform practitioners in their efforts to encourage additional recycling and other pro-environmental outcomes.

 Key Words: Environmental Activism, Recycling Behavior, Semantic Connotations, Public Communication

**Tai-Yee Wu Ph.D. is Assistant Professor in the Institute of Communication Studies at National Chiao Tung University in Taiwan. His current work focuses on the practices of user-generated content on a variety of communication-related topics, including news discussions (online news comments) and online marketing (consumer product reviews). 

*Miles Radin studied communication marketing and environmental communication at the Department of Communication, University of Connecticut, Arjona Building, 337 Mansfield Road, Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.A. He currently works as a Naturalist in Yosemite National Park, and is leading an environmentally-minded living community there. 

***Xiaowen Xu is a doctoral student in the Department of Communication, University of Connecticut, Arjona Building, 337, Mansfield Road, Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.A. She is interested in how new media technology and social media influence consumer, health and environmental motivation, attitudes and behaviors. Her general research interest is media effects of new communication technology.

****Adam Rainear is a doctoral student in the Department of Communication, University of Connecticut, Arjona Building, 337, Mansfield Road, Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.A. His research interests are focused primarily in the fields of risk and science communication, with a specific focus on communicating the weather and climate to the public using new communication technology. 

*****David Atkin Ph.D. is a Professor in the Department of Communication, University of Connecticut, Arjona Building, 337, Mansfield Road, Storrs, Connecticut, U.S.A.  His research interests include the diffusion of new media and program formats, political communication and telecommunication policy. The present study was supported by a grant provided by The Office of Undergraduate Research at the University of Connecticut. 

^JCMR Journal  of  Communication and Media Research, Vol. 9, No. 2, October  2017, 29 – 44