The Power of a Bad Example -- A Field Experiment in Household Garbage Disposal
Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper 12-061/1
30 Pages Posted: 6 Jul 2012
There are 2 versions of this paper
The Power of a Bad Example – A Field Experiment In Household Garbage Disposal
The Power of a Bad Example - A Field Experiment in Household Garbage Disposal
Date Written: July 3, 2012
Abstract
Field-experimental studies have shown that people litter more in more littered environments. Inspired by these findings, many cities around the world have adopted policies to quickly remove litter. While such policies may avoid that people follow the bad example of litterers, they may also invite free-riding on public cleaning services. This paper reports the results of a natural field experiment where, in a randomly assigned part of a residential area, the frequency of cleaning was reduced from daily to twice a week during a three-month period. Using high-frequency data on litter at treated and control locations before, during, and after the experiment, we find strong evidence that litter begets litter. However, we also find evidence that some people start to clean up after themselves when public cleaning services are diminished.
Keywords: littering, public services, free-riding, field experiment
JEL Classification: C93, H40, K42
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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