I’m Lazy = Yes quite probably true as the human brain does a ‘cost-benefit’ analysis and if there isn’t a bin easily accessible, littering makes sense when there is no ‘benefit’ for the carrier of the item.
I don’t care about the community = Yes, again probably true as the biggest litterers are generally young people between ages of 18-34. This is often done as a sign of rebellion from wider societal expectations to fit in with their peer group and appear ‘cool’. Furthermore, humans look for cues in areas to understand what is the social norm in a particular area, so the appearance of litter suggests that it is socially acceptable. Research has shown that with 1-2 pieces of litter, (78% and 90% of people, respectively, used bins) with more than three pieces of litter, litterers increased by 41%.
I think other people should clean up after me – Yes, it’s called the ‘tragedy of the commons’. People often think their one piece of litter won’t make a difference. Plus there is a lack of sense of shared responsibility and care for public places because taxes are paid to ‘clean and maintain them’ – it’s the councils responsibility and people are paid to clean the streets, beaches etc.
You brought your rubbish here, please take it home Well true, but people don’t feel responsible for the packaging once they’ve consumed the goods. They bought the contents inside the packaging, not the packaging so they don’t value it. The fact that packaging has no value and has become ‘rubbish’ is a further tragedy of the commons. The manufacturers don’t value packaging so don’t want it back, and plastic wrappers are so thin that there is no value for recyclers. It has no value for anyone.