A study of over 10,000 consumers found that shoppers prefer single-use plastic bags to save money than the environment.
Research by Nottingham University Business School’s N/LAB analytics center of excellence suggests that the huge drop in plastic bag usage in the UK may not be due to shoppers worrying about the environment.
The study used more than a million loyalty card transactions in order to determine the psychological and demographic predictors of single use bag purchases.
Bags are more likely to be purchased by younger shoppers, who are more likely to be male and less frugal, but whose environmental concerns don’t affect their decision to buy bags.
A study of more than 10,000 consumers revealed that shoppers shun single-use plastic bags in order to save money and the environment.
These findings came as plastic bag use rises to an annual peak during the festive season, despite all England’s retailers being legally required by law to charge 10p per bag.
Dr James Goulding (N/LAB’s associate Director), co-author of the study, stated that: “Until now, very little was known about those who still buy plastic bags regularly or those who don’t.”
“Previous research tended to be focused only on consumers’ personalities and motivations, not, crucially on whether individuals’ beliefs actually translate into actions in the real world.
“Our approach recognizes that people leave behind a significant amount of data that can be used to do social good and shed light on their actual behavior.
More than 10,000 consumers completed a questionnaire to learn about their lives, traits, and environmental opinions.
The results of their surveys were linked to their purchases data. A machine learning algorithm was then used in order to determine the factors which actually predicted bag-buying behavior.
The survey asked about opinions on climate change and environmental considerations in general. However, these views were not found to have any influence on purchasing decisions.
Dr Gavin Smith is an associate professor in analytics. He said that his findings would show that bag-buyers who are not frequent buyers are at least partially motivated to save money.
“But what we didn’t anticipate, not least considering the role of environmentalism underpinning this levy, was that environmental worries wouldn’t predict any consumption at all.
“This suggests that future campaigns to reduce plastic bags consumption might benefit by different messaging.
“It’s all about understanding who and how to target them.”
In light of growing concerns about the impact plastic bags have on litter and pollution, Wales introduced the UK’s first levy in 2011. Northern Ireland followed in 2013 and Scotland in 2014.
With growing concerns over the environmental impact of plastic bags on litter and pollution, Wales implemented the UK’s first levy. Northern Ireland followed in 2013 and Scotland followed in 2014.
After its seven largest supermarkets gave away more 7.6 billion single use bags in 2015, England introduced its own 5p tax. It doubled to a minimum of 10.2p in May and was extended across all retailers.
2014 saw the distribution of approximately 140 bags per person, which equates to approximately 61,000 tonnes.
Five years ago, the supply of single-use bags increased. These bags take longer to degrade in nature and can cause damage to wildlife.
Retailers were required to charge a fee to raise funds for charities. Single-use bags were given away in England by more than 90%. There have been an estimated 180 million donations to good causes.
According to N/LAB’s study Northern Ireland has the highest plastic bag sales. The lowest are found in the North West and South West regions of England.
Rosa Lavelle Hill, co-author of the study, from the Alan Turing Institute, stated that a better understanding of consumers’ psychology and behaviour is essential to making pro-environmental decisions.
