understanding water bottle behavior of...

UnderstandingWater Bottle Behavior of

StudentsEnviron 391: Sustainability and the Campus

Winter 2011University of Michigan

Executive Summary 3Introduction 4Goals and Objectives 5Water Bottle & Fact Sheet Study 6 Methodology Findings: Initial Survey Findings Mid-term Survey Findings 7 Final Survey Findings 8 Individual Comparative Findings 9 Conclusions 10Class Presentation Study 11 Methodology FindingsMichigan Community Scholars Program Study 12 Methodology FindingsFraternity Interview Study 13 Methodology FindingsFocus Group Study 14 Methodology FindingsSynthesis of Results 15Recommendations 16Conclusion and Lessons Learned 18Appendix: 19 Endnotes WaterBottle&FactSheetStudy Surveys 20 Graphs 29 Fact Sheet & Reusable Water Bottle 33 ClassPresentationStudy Surveys 34 MichiganCommunityScholarsProgramStudy 36 Survey Graphs 37 FocusGroupStudy Focus Group Questions 38

ThepushforasustainableUniversityofMichigancampusrequireschangingbehaviorsthatnegativelyimpacttheenvironment.Bottledwaterisassociatedwithmanyenvironmentalandsocialproblemsaroundtheworld.ThegoaloftheWaterBottleBehaviorteamwastocollectandanalyzeasubstantialsetofdatainordertodeterminestudentwaterbottlebehaviorontheUniversityofMichigancampus.Determiningthebehaviorsofstudentsregardingdisposableandreusablewaterbottlesandidentifyingeffectivemethodstodecreasebottledwaterconsumptionisasteptowardfosteringamoresustainablelifestyleoncampus.Weworkedtopromotesustainablewateruseoncampuswithbothoursponsors,AmyHarrisandManjaHolland,alongwithourpart-nershipwithLSA’sWinter2011WaterThemeSemester. Ourdatacollectionmethodsincludedafocusgroup,interviews,andsurveysfromover300UniversityofMichiganstudents.Wedistributedreusablewaterbottlesandfactsheetsinhopestodiscoverwhichmaterialsaremosteffectiveinencouragingstudentstousereusablewaterbottles.Wegaveavisualpresentationtoaclasstostudytheeffectsofthistypeofeducationonstudentbottledwaterconsumption.Wealsosurveyedagroupofstudentsinaliving/learningcommunitywhoreceivedafreereusablewaterbottleatthebeginningoftheacademicyear.Inadditiontosurveys,focusgroupsandinterviewswereconductedinordertobetterunderstandthoughtprocessesbehindwaterbottleusage.Throughthesevariousresearchtechniques,wewereabletoiden-tifywhichmethodsweremostsuccessfulinchangingbehavior. Throughoutourvariousresearchprojectswenoticedrecurringtrends.Wefoundthatitisinconvenientforstudentstocleantheirreusablewaterbottlesparticularlyintheresidencehalls.OurresultsindicatedthatthereisalackofeducationregardingthequalityandsafetyofAnnArbor’stapwateramongtheUniversity’sstudents.Peerinfluencewasfoundtoeffectstudentwaterbottlebehavior.Inaddition,wediscoveredthatprovidingfreereusablewaterbottlestostudentsandeducatingstudentsthroughvisualmeanscaneffectivelychangebehavior. Basedonourresults,wehavedevelopedthefollowingrecommendationstohelpmotivateUofMstu-dentsusereusablewaterbottlesinsteadofpurchasingbottledwater: •WerecommendthatUniversityHousinginstallmorecleaningsinksinresidencehallfacilitiesforstudentstocleantheirwaterbottles.Wealsosuggestthatpromptsbepostedtoencouragewaterbottleuseandcleaningatbothnewandexistingresidencehallsinks. •PlanetBlueshouldpostpromptsaboveexistingdrinkingfountainsincampusbuildings.Thiswouldremindstudents,faculty,andstafftofilluptheirwaterbottleswhileemphasizingthequalityandsafetyofAnnArbor’stapwater. •Wesuggestthatwaterbottleeducationbeincorporatedintofreshmenandinternationalstudentorienta-tions.ThiswouldincluderequiringtourguidestocarryMichiganreusablewaterbottlesandmakingthewaterbottlerefillstationinAngellHalladestinationduringcampustours.ThequalityandsafetyofAnnArbor’stapwatershouldbeemphasizedtoeliminatemisconceptionsandencouragesustainablewaterbottlepractices.Wealsoadvisethatstudentsbeprovidedwithfreereusablewaterbottlesattheseorientations. •WeencourageUofMdepartmentsandcampusgroups(living/learningcommunities,themesemesters,PlanetBlue,etc.)todistributefreewaterbottlesthatareeasytouseandclean.Webelievethatfurtherresearchshouldbedonetofindthemost“studentfriendly”waterbottle.

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Itisassumedthat“environmentalrealitieswillsoonforceustochangeourresource-costlybehaviors”.Thesechangesmustincludemodificationsinboththequantityandwaysinwhichweusewateronadailybasis1.TheprivatizationofwaterresourcesandsellingofbottledwaterhasraisedseriousconcernsinWest-ernculturesabouttheutilizationofandwastelinkedtotheuseofdisposalwatercontainers.In2009,600,000single-usewaterbottleswerepurchasedontheUniversityofMichigancampus2.Topromoteamoresustainablecampusthisnumbermustbesignificantlyreducedbyencouragingstudentstousereusablewaterbottles.Thegoalofourprojectwastounderstandstudentwaterbottleusageandtodeterminethemosteffectivemethodstomotivatestudentstousereusablewaterbottlesinsteadofpurchasingbottledwater. AmyHarrisandManjaHolland,co-chairsoftheLSAWinter2011WaterThemeSemester,sponsoredourproject.TheWaterThemeSemesterconsistedofmorethan75coursesand100lectures,symposia,confer-ences,exhibitions,films,performances,panelsandworkshopsopentostudents,faculty,staff,andthepublicaboutwaterrelatedtopicsandissues.AtmanyoftheseeventsfreereusablewaterbottleswiththeWaterSemes-terlogoonthemwerehandedoutwithmessagesinside.Thesemessagesforthe“MessageinaBottle”cam-paignincluded10waterfactsand10wateractionstoimprovepeople’swaterliteracy.Sinceourprojectfocusedonbottledwaterusagewecreatedanew“IsYourBottleGreen?”messagethatincludedfivefactsaboutthenegativeimpactsofbottledwaterandoneactionfacttobeusedinourproject(SeeAppendix). Duringthissemester,therehavealsobeenmajoreffortsbystudentgroupstoreducebottledwatercon-sumptiononcampus.Thestudentorganization,EnvironmentalIssuesCommission,alongwithLaurenSopher,amemberoftheWaterSemesterStudentSteeringCommittee,createdapetitiontobanthesaleofbottledwaterontheUofMcampus.TheythencreatedaneducationalpresentationonbottledwaterandpresentedittotheMichiganStudentAssemblyinanattempttoinfluencetheirvotesfortheban.Also,thesteeringcommitteeraisedmoneythroughoutthesemestertohelpfundPlanetBluetoinstallmorereusablewaterbottlerefillsta-tionsoncampus.Wehopethatourrecommendationsstimulatecontinuedactiontowardtheseefforts. Althoughitisdifficulttoeffectivelychangeanindividual’sbehavior,therearemanydifferentinforma-tional,positivemotivational,andcoercivetechniquesthathavebeenshowntobeeffectiveinmotivatingbe-haviorchange(e.g.prompts,feedback,commitment,socialnorms,rewards,punishments,etc.).Therearealsomanyfactorsinvolvedthatmustbetakenintoconsiderationwhendevelopingabehaviorchangeintervention(e.g.anindividual’svalues,beliefs,attitudes,situationalfactors,socialnorms,actionskills,competence,etc.)1.Ourprojectanalyzedtheimpactsofeducationtechniques,socialnorms,situationalfactors,waterbottledesigns,andbehaviorchangesettings. Aportionofourprojectfocusedontheeffectsofsocialnormsandeducationalmessagesonwaterbottleusage.Cialdinietal.’s“ARoomwithaViewpoint”studyfoundthateducationalmessagesandapproachesareineffective4.Inthisstudytheyprovidedhotelguestswithfivemessagesthatweremeanttoconvincegueststoreusetheirtowels4.Oneofthesemessagesdescribedtheenvironmentalsideeffectsofnotreusingyourtowelsandurgedgueststoreusetheirtowelstosavetheenvironment4.Theyfoundthattheeducationalmessagewastheleasteffectivemessageinconvincinghotelgueststoreusetheirtowels4.Messagesthatconveyeddescrip-tivenorms,suchas“amajorityofhotelguestsparticipatedinthetowelrecyclingprogram,”werefarmoreeffective4.WithCialdinietal.’sstudyinmind,wetestededucation’seffectivenessinchangingwaterbottleusebehavior4.

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Introduction

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ThemaingoaloftheWaterBottleBehaviorTeamwastocollectasubstantialdatasetforinterpreta-tionandanalysisinordertodeterminebottledwaterandreusablewaterbottlebehaviorontheUniversityofMichiganCampusandusethisinformationtobetterpromotetheuseoftapwateroverbottledwater.Throughthisstudywesoughttounderstandthethoughtprocessesassociatedwithchoosingbottledwaterovertapwater,determinehowsocialnormsinfluencewaterbottlebehavior,identifythebestmethodstochangewaterbottlebehavior,andcreaterecommendationstostudentenvironmentalinitiatives,campusfaculty,andinfluentialcam-pusleadersfordecreasingtheuseofdisposablebottledwaterandincreasingtheuseofreusablewaterbottles. Eachmethodusedinthisstudycontributedtoouroverallgoal.Throughtheuseofinitialsurveystarget-ingstudentswhodrinkdisposablebottledwater,wesoughttolearnthereasonsbehindthisbehavior.Subse-quentsurveysgiventothesesamestudentsafterbeinggiveninformationand/orareusablewaterbottlehelpedusdeterminethefactorsandmethodsthatchangebottledwaterbehavior.OthermethodsusedinourresearchtoachievethesegoalsincludedsurveyingagroupofMichiganCommunityScholarsProgramstudents,interviewswithseveralboysinafraternity,afocusgroupwithourfellowSustainabilityandtheCampusclassmates,andsurveyingstudentsfromaBiologicalAnthropologyclass.EachoftheseprojectscontributedimportantaspectstoourobjectivesandwillbediscussedindepthintheMethodologysection. ThesuccessofthesustainabilityinitiativeontheUniversityofMichigan’scampusreliesonchangingeverydaybehaviorsthatnegativelyimpacttheenvironment.Bystudyingwaterbottlebehavioranddiscoveringhowtodecreasetheuseofdisposablebottledwaterwecanpotentiallyaidtheuniversityinbecomingamoresustainablecampus.

Goals and Objectives

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Methodology ThemainstructureoftheprojectrevolvesaroundtheseriesofsurveysthatwereconductedwithUniver-sityofMichiganstudents(SeeAppendixforsurveys).Theinitialsurvey,thefirstofthreesurveys,wasgiventoasampleof130students.Withinthatsample,46studentsreceivedanLSAWaterThemeSemesterreusablewa-terbottleaftertakingthesurvey(SeeAppendixforpictureofbottle).Another45studentsreceivedthereusablewaterbottlethatcontainedafactsheetinsideonthenegativeimplicationsofdrinkingbottledwater,andtheother39studentsjustreceivedthefactsheet.Thepurposeoftheinitialsurveywastomeasuretheparticipants’waterbottleversusreusablewaterbottleusage,alongwiththeirbehaviorandattitudetowardseach. Thesurveysweredistributedatvariouslocationsaroundcampus.ThelocationsincludedtheMichiganUnion,MichiganLeague,PierpontCommons,ShapiroUndergraduateLibrary,BlueApple,andVictorsCaféintheHillDiningCenter.Wetargetedstudentswhohadjustpurchasedorweredrinkingbottledwater.Althoughwewereabletoget150studentstoparticipateinthestudy,thefinalsampleendedupbeing130students.Dur-ingonesessionofdistributiontherewasmiscommunicationastowhichbottlesalreadycontainedthefactsheetinsidesosomestudentsreceivedduplicateinformationsheetsandweremovedthesurveysfromoursamplethatwefeltwouldcreateanerrorintheoverallfindings.Whenpassingoutthesurveysthestudentswerethattheywouldreceiveafewadditionale-mailsandsurveysthroughoutthesemesterasapartofthestudy,andiftheycompletedallthreeofthesurveyswewouldenterthemintoa$50giftcarddrawingtoBivouac,UrbanOutfit-ters,Chipotle,orEspressoRoyale.Afollow-upe-mailwasalsosenttotheparticipantstoremindthemofthefollowingtwosurveysinthestudy,andtomakesurethattheemailaddresstheyhadgivenuswascorrect. Closetoamonthfollowingourinitialsurveydistributionthemid-termsurveywassentoutviae-mailtoalloftheparticipants.Thepurposeofthemid-termsurvey,aswellasthepurposeofthefinalsurvey,wastotrackanybehaviorchangesthatmayhaveoccurredwiththeparticipant’swaterbottleusage,aswellastodeterminewhetherornotreceivingareusablewaterbottleorinformationsheetinfluencedtheirbehavior.Themid-termsurveyalsohelpedtokeepthestudentsengagedinthestudyandmoreawareoftheirwaterbottleconsumption.Threedifferentvariationsofthemid-termsurveywerecreatedsothateachonewasspecifiedtowardsthematerialthattheparticipantreceived.Fromthe130participantsthatweree-mailed,wereceived61responses.Thefinalsurveywassentoutthefollowingmonthtothestudentsthatcompletedtheinitialsur-veyandthemid-termsurvey.Amajorityofthequestionsfromthemid-termsurveywerecarriedintothefinalsurveysothatwecouldcompareindividualresponsesandtrackanybehaviorchangesthatoccurredthroughoutthemonth.Additionalquestionswerealsoaskedaboutthestudentsoverallattitudetowardsthestudyandifitpromotedanychangeintermsoftheirbottledwaterusage.Wereceived42responsesforthefinalsurvey,thus,32%ofouroriginalparticipantstookallthreesurveysinthestudy.Followingtheendofthisstudy,twogiftcardwinnerswerechosenandnotified.

Findings

Initial Survey Findings (130 students total):

•46studentsreceivedareusablewaterbottle,39studentsreceivedafactsheetaboutimpactsofbottled water,and45studentsreceivedbothareusablewaterbottleandafactsheet. •Whenasked,“Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater?”:

Every day 39.2%

A few times a week 25.4%

A few times a month 20.0%

Less than a few times a month 15.4%

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•“Whydoyoudrinkbottledwater?(circleallthatapply)”

Conveniencewasthefirstoption/answerlistedunderthesurveyquestion,thereforewebelievethatthis percentagewassohighbecausemanystudentsmaynothavereadthattheycouldchooseallanswers thatapplyand/ortheywantedtocompletethesurveyquicklytocontinuedoingtheiractivities. •57%ofrespondentsindicatedtheyalwaysrecycletheirplasticwaterbottlesafterusewhile37%some timesrecyclethem. •Althoughwetargetedstudentswhopurchasebottledwater,77%ofstudentssurveyedalreadyowneda reusablewaterbottle,revealingthatnothavingaccesstoareusablewaterbottleisnotamajorbarrier formoststudents.However,21%ofrespondentsindicatedtheyneverusetheirreusablewaterbottleand 32%saidtheyonlyuseitafewtimesaweek. •Themostpopularreasonswhystudentsdidnotusetheirinitialreusablewaterbottlesincluded,“Ireuse theplasticdisposablewaterbottles,”“thetapwatertastesodd,”“it’seasiertogrababottledwater,”and “Idon’twanttocarryitaroundwithme.”Alsomanystudentswholiveintheresidencehallsindicated thatthey“don’twanttohavetocleanit.”52%ofstudentssurveyedlivedintheresidencehalls. •Whenasked,“Howmanyofyourroommatesuseareusablewaterbottle?”33.1%saidafewand32% saidnone,while14%livedalone,indicatingthatusingareusablewaterbottleisnotanormamongtheir housemates. •Ofthe130studentssurveyedonlyonestudentwasaProgramintheEnvironmentmajorand50%of respondentswerefreshman.Thissuggeststhatourrespondentswerelesslikelytoalreadyhave beeninfluencedbyinformationfromenvironmentalcourses.

Mid-term Survey Findings(61 students total):

• Fact Sheet Group Results: 19 students

oWhenasked,“Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater?”:

o73%ofstudentshadbeenusingareusablewaterbottle. o79%ofstudentsfoundtheinformationsheettobesomewhattoveryeffective,and67%said thatithadsomeinfluenceonthemtousethereusablewaterbottle.Alsomoststudentslearned somethingnewfromthefactsheet.

• Water Bottle Group Results: 19 students


Every day 12.5%



Never 18.8%

Convenience 77.7%

Bottled water tastes better than tap water 26.2%

Bottled water is cleaner 10.0%

Other 10.0%

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Every day 26.3%



Never 0.0%

oSincereceivingtheLSAreusablewaterbottle,42%ofstudentshadbeenusingitwhile32% hadn’tuseditatall(68%useitatleastafewtimesamonth). oTheyallenjoyedreceivingthereusablewaterbottleandmostofthemneededone.

• Water Bottle and Fact Sheet Group Results: 23 students


oSincereceivingtheLSAreusablewaterbottle,35%ofstudentshadbeenusingiteveryday, while26%hadneverusedit(74%haveuseditatleastafewtimesamonth). oManystudentshadproblemswiththeoveralldesignandefficiencyofthebottlewegavethem (e.g.thetopflippedopenanditspilledeasily,itleaked,itbroke,itwasahassletoclean). o57%ofstudentsfoundthefactsheetinterestingsomewhattoveryinteresting,and39%indi catedthatithadsomeinfluenceonthemtousethereusablewaterbottle.Moststudentslearned somethingnewfromtheinformationsheet. oOverall,amajorityofthestudentsenjoyedreceivingbothitemsbecausetheyneededareusable waterbottle.

Final Survey Findings (42 students total):

•Fact Sheet Group Results: 11 students


o64%ofthestudentshadbeenusingareusablewaterbottle. oThosewhousedareusablewaterbottleuseditbecauseitsavesthemmoney,itisconvenient, tapwateriscleanerandtastesbetter. oThosewhodidnotuseareusablewaterbottlechosenottobecausetheythinkbottledwateris cleaner,bottledwatertastesbetterandismoreconvenient,andtheydonotwanttospendtheir moneyonareusablewaterbottle. o55%ofstudentsbelievedthatthestudymadethemmoreawareoftheirbottledwaterdrinking habits(Figure1). o36%ofstudentsatleastagreedtheynowpurchaselessbottledwaterthanbeforeparticipating inourstudy(Figure1).

Every day 30.4%



Never 8.7%

Every day 27.3%



Never 9.1%

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• Water Bottle Group Results: 15 students


oSincecompletingthemid-termsurvey,53%ofstudentshadbeenusingtheirLSAreusable waterbottleafewtimesamonth. oThosewhousedthereusablewaterbottleuseditbecauseitsavesthemmoney,itisconvenient, andtheylikethedesignofit. oThosewhodidnotusethereusablewaterbottlechosenottobecausetheythinkbottledwater iscleaner,tastesbetter,and/orismoreconvenient.Alsomanystudentseitherusedadifferent waterbottleortheyforgottousetheLSAWaterSemesterbottle. o73%ofstudentsbelievedthatthestudymadethemmoreawareoftheirbottledwaterdrinking habits(Figure2). o67%ofstudentssurveyedatleastagreethattheynowpurchaselessbottledwaterthanbefore participatinginourstudy(Figure2).

• Water Bottle and Fact Sheet Group Results: 16 students


oSincecompletingthemid-termsurvey,31%ofstudentshadbeenusingtheLSAreusablewater bottleafewtimesaweek,yet44%hadneverusedit(56%haveuseditatleastafewtimesa month). oThosewhousedthereusablewaterbottleuseditbecauseitsavesthemmoneyanditisconve nient. o69%ofstudentsbelievedthatthestudymadethemmoreawareoftheirbottledwaterdrinking habits(Figure3). o50%atleastagreedtheynowpurchaselessbottledwaterthanbeforeparticipatinginourstudy (Figure3).

Individual Comparative Findings:

•Thenumberofrespondentsinoursamplesizewasnotlargeenoughtodrawsignificantconclusions. Becauseofthesmallsamplesize,wedonotbelievethattheresponseswereceivedwererepresenta tiveofthestudentpopulation.Alsowebelievethatoursemesterlongstudywasnotenoughtimeto testdurablebehaviorchange(i.e.maintainingthebehaviorovertimewithoutrepeatedintervention). •Therewereonlytwostudentsoutof11whoreceivedonlyafactsheetwhoreducedtheirbottledwater consumption. •Ninestudentsoutof15whoreceivedonlyareusablewaterbottlereducedtheirbottledwatercon sumption.Thus,weconcludethatmorestudentswilladoptthebehaviorofusingareusable waterbottleiftheyaregivenafreewaterbottleandnotaninformationsheetalone.

Every day 6.7%



Never 13.3%

Every day 12.5%



Never 18.8%

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•Sevenstudentsoutof16whoreceivedbothawaterbottleandfactsheetreducedtheirbottledwater consumptionoverthesemester. •Figures4&5showthatthenumberofstudentswhodrankbottledwatereverydaydecreasedfrom 38.1%intheinitialsurveyto14.3%inthefinalsurvey.Toaccuratelymakethiscomparisononlythe 42individuals’datathatcompletedthefinalsurveywereused(SeeAppendix).

Conclusions:

Basedonourfindings,thereusablewaterbottlerecipientgroupwasthemosteffectiveinpromotingsustainablewaterbottlepractices.Thefactsheetwasnotasinfluentialasreceivingafreewaterbottle.Althoughstudentsfoundthefactsheetstobesomewhateffectiveandinformativetheydidnothaveasmuchofalong-termeffectonstudents’behavior.However,ifthisinformationwasgiveninanothermediaformitcouldbemoreeffectiveinmotivatingbehaviorchange.Themajorreasonsforstudentsnotusingtheirreusablewaterbottlesinvolvedthedesignandfunctionalityofthebottles.Alsoamajorityofstudentswhoeitherreceivedawaterbottleorbothawaterbottleandfactsheetagreedthattheynowpurchaselessbottledwaterthanbeforeparticipatinginourstudy.Amajorityofstudentsinthefactsheetgroupdidnotagreethattheypurchaselessbottledwaterthanbeforeparticipatinginourstudy.Thisagainindicatesthatthefactsheetalonewasnotveryeffective.

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Methodology

Inanattempttofurtherunderstandwaterbottlebehavioramongawidervarietyofstudents,wesurveyedforty-ninestudentsinabiologicalanthropologyclassattheUniversityofMichigantitled“NutritionandEvolu-tion.”WedistributedinitialsurveystothisclassonMarch22,2011.Thissurveyaskedquestionsconcerningwaterbottlebehaviorinindividuals.Aftertheclasscompletedthissurvey,wepresentedoursixkeyfactsusingaPowerPointpresentation.Thesesixfactshadbeenusedpreviouslyonahandoutwecreatedandwerechosenasthemostinformativeandrelevanttostudents.About2weekslater,onApril7,2011,weemailedtheindivid-ualswhohadparticipatedintheinitialsurveyandpresentationtoparticipateinapost-survey.

Findings

Ofthe49studentssurveyedinitially,25filledoutthepost-survey.Ourresultsseemtoindicatethatthesestudentswereinfluencedbythepresentationtheyreceivedinclass. •47.8%foundtheinformationtobesomewhatinterestingandthevisualpresentationtobesomewhat effective.Themajorityofstudentsbelievedthattheywereinfluencedbythispresentation.Thisseems toshowthatavisualpresentationcanbeaneffectivemethodofeducation. •Intheinitialsurvey,20.4%ofstudentsrespondedthattheydrinkbottledwatereveryday.Inthepost- survey,8%ofstudentssaidtheydrinkbottledwatereveryday.Thisindicatesthatafterreceiv ingthevisualpresentation,therewasadecreaseintheamountofbottledwaterconsumed.Whenasked aboutrecyclingtheiremptybottlesofwater,60.4%respondedthattheyalwaysrecycletheirbottles. However,whenofferedtheoptionof“Idonotpurchasebottledwater,”only44%respondedthat theyalwaysrecyclebottledwater,with24%respondingthattheydonotpurchasebottledwater. Webelieveaddingthisoptioninthepost-surveyreducedtheamountofstudentswhosaidthatthey alwaysrecycletheirbottles. •Intheinitialsurvey,83.7%ofstudentsrespondedthattheyownareusablewaterbottle,andinthe post-surveytherewasanincreaseto92%.Ofthe83.7%ofstudentsintheinitialsurveywhosaidthat theyownareusablewaterbottle,51.2%respondedthattheyuseiteveryday.Ofthe92%ofthe studentswhosaidtheyownareusablewaterbottleinthepost-survey,60%respondedthatthey useiteveryday.Additionally,therewasadecreaseintheamountofstudentswhorespondedthatthey neverusetheirreusablewaterbottle,goingfrom18.6%intheinitialsurveyto4%inthepost-survey. Becausewepresentedinaclassroomsetting,weaskedhowmanyreusablewaterbottleownershadtheirwaterbottlewiththeminclass.Only1/3oftheclassrespondedthattheyhadtheirreusablewaterbottlewiththem.Wethenaskedwhyitwasthatstudentsdidnothavetheirreusablewaterbottleswiththem.Themostprevalentresponsewasthattheyhadforgottentheirwaterbottlefollowedcloselybytheinconvenienceofcar-ryingit. Inthisbiologicalanthropologyclass,21outof49studentsstatedthattheyhadaanthropologyrelatedconcentrationorminor.Asanthropologyisthestudyofhumankind,webelievethatthesestudentsaremoreinclinedtocareaboutthepreservationoftheenvironmentduetotheirconcernforhumanwelfare.Withthisinmind,webelievethattheresultsofthesesurveysmaynotberepresentativeoftheentirestudentpopulation. Inthepost-survey,56.5%ofstudentssaidthatenvironmentalreasonswerethebiggestfactorinchoosingtousereusablewaterbottles.Therewereverymixedresponsesonwhetherpeoplebelievedthattapwaterwascleanerthanbottledwater,indicatingthateducationconcerningthehealthandsafetyoftapwaterislacking.Astrongmajorityofstudentsrespondedthatseveraltoamajorityoftheirfriendsusereusablewaterbottles,how-everalmostallstudentssaidthattheirfriendsuseofreusablewaterbottleshadnoeffectonthem.Savingmoneyandconvenienceseemedtobethestrongestreasonsforstudentstousereusablewaterbottles.Finally,weaskedwhetherthesestudentslearnedanythingnewfromthispresentationand34.8%respondedpositively. 11

Methodology WesurveyedstudentsintheMichiganCommunityScholarsProgram(MCSP)tofurtheranalyzewaterbottlebehaviorontheUofMcampus.MCSPisalivingandlearningprogramthatislocatedinEastQuadanddedicatedtocommunityservice.Inthebeginningoftheyear,allMCSPstudentsweregivenaMCSPreus-ablewaterbottle.Wesurveyedthemtofindouthowmanystudentsstillusethereusablewaterbottletheyweregiven,andthereasonswhytheystilluseornolongerusethereusablewaterbottle.Withthisgroup,wewereinterestedinevaluatingtheinfluenceofsocialnormsinwaterbottlebehavior.

Findings

Therewere37studentsfromMCSPthatrespondedtothesurvey. •Justoverhalfofthestudents(56.8%)reportedthattheystillusetheirreusablewaterbottles.Outofthe 23studentswhostillusetheirreusablewaterbottle,47.8%indicatedtheirmainreasonforusingthe reusablewaterbottleswasbecauseitisgoodfortheenvironment(Figure6).However,using thereusablewaterbottlessimplybecausetheirfriendsusereusablewaterbottleswasconsidered tobetheleastimportantreason.Only4.3%ofthe23studentsputthisastheirmainreasonfor continuingtousetheirreusablewaterbottles. •Themainreasonwhystudentsdidnotcontinuetousetheirreusablewaterbottleswasbecausethe bottlesweredevelopingmold.Outofthe14studentswhonolongerusetheirbottles,44.4%ofthe studentsresponded“Other”andexplainedthatthebottleswerecollectingcoloniesof moldandtheshapeofthebottlesmadeitverydifficulttocleanthem(Figure7). Accordingtotheresponses,nolongerusingthereusablewaterbottlesbecausetheirfriendsdid notusereusablewaterbottleswasconsideredtobetheleastimportantreason.Infact,noneof thestudentsputthisastheirmainreasonfornolongerusingtheirreusablewaterbottles. Thesefindingspointtoseveralkeyconclusions.Forone,socialnormsseemtohavenoinfluenceonwhetherornotstudentscontinuedtousetheirreusablewaterbottles.Second,resultssuggestedthatthemainreasonwhystudentscontinuedtousetheirbottlesisbecauseitisgoodfortheenvironment.Finally,itappearsasthoughmoststudentsdidnotcontinuetousethereusablewaterbottlebecauseofproblemswiththewaterbottleitself. Thissurveymayhavecontainedsomeinherentbiases.Forexample,duetotheresponsebias,somestu-dentsmaynothavebeenawareorwillingtoadmitthattheirfriendsinfluencetheirbehavior.Theymayhavefeltthatadmittingthiswouldmakethemseemlesslikeindividualsandmorelikefollowers.Alongthesamelines,theymayhaveansweredthattheirmainreasonforcontinuingtousethereusablewaterbottlesisbecauseitisgoodfortheenvironmentsothattheyseemmoreselflessandsociallyaware.Despiteanonymity,studentsmaystillhaveansweredinwaysthattheyfeltwereexpectedofthemormadethemfeelbetteraboutthemselves.


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Methodology FourmembersofSigmaChifraternityweregivenfreereusablewaterbottleswitheducationsheets.Aftertwomonths,thesestudentstookpartinafocusgroupabouttheirexperienceswiththeirnewbottles.Thisgroupwasincludedinouroverallstudybecausewewantedtotrackpeople’sprogresswiththereusablewaterbottlesovertime.Unlikeasurvey,thisfocusstudyallowedustoaskindepthquestionsabouttheadvantagesanddisadvantagesofusingareusablewaterbottleascomparedtobottledwater,andhelpedusgaininsightintothebehavioralmindsetspeoplehavewhenchoosingoneovertheother.Thesebrotherswereallpickedfromthesamefraternity,SigmaChi,sothatwecouldseeifsocialnormshadanyinfluenceontheusageofthereusablebottles.Eachofthebrothersweregivenareusablewaterbottlewithaneducationsheetinside,andchallengedtousethemasmuchaspossibleoverthesemester.Wetoldthemthattheywouldeventuallybeinterviewedabouttheirexperiencesbutdidnotrevealwhichquestionswouldbeasked.

Findings

Aftertwomonthsofowningreusablewaterbottles,threemembersofSigmaChifraternityhavechangedtheirwaterbottleuse.Priortoowningareusablewaterbottle,allthreestudentshadusedplasticdis-posablebottlesastheirprimarysourceofwater.Theyexplainedthatitwasconvenientforthemtousetheseplasticbottlesbecausetheirfraternity’sdiningservicebringsboxesofthemtotheirdailymeals. However,afterreceivingafreewaterbottle,allthreestudentsareconsistentlyusingreusablewaterbottlesastheirmainsourceofwater.Theygaveanumberofreasonsfortheirchangeinbehavior: •Convenience:Owningareusablewaterbottlegivesyouaccesstofreshandcoldwateratalltimes. Theysaidthatusingplasticwaterbottleswasinconvenientcomparedtotheirreusablebottlesbecause theirwatergotwarmasthedaywentonandtheyhadtobuyanewbottleiftheywantedfreshwater. •Cost:Allthreeofthemsaidthatowningareusablewaterbottlehassavedthemalotofmoney. •Environmentalfactor:Allthreestudentsagreedhelpingtheenvironmentmotivatedthemtochange theirbehavior. •Price:Allthreestudentssaidthatreceivingafreewaterbottlewasthebiggestfactorinchangingtheir behavior.Theysaidthattheychosenottousereusablewaterbottlespriortoreceivingtheirfree onebecausetheydidnotwanttospendovertendollarsonareusablebottle. •Socialnorms:Onestudent,whohappenstobeanenvironmentmajor,saidthathefeltpressuretousea reusablewaterbottlebecausealmosteveryoneinPitEusesone.Hesaidthathejumpedonthechance tousethisfreebottlebecauseofthispressurehehasbeenfeelinginhisclasses. Thestudentsalsosaidthattheeducationsheetsplayedaverysmallroleinchangingtheirbehavior.Onestudentdidnotevenrememberreceivingoneandtheothertwocouldhardlyrecallthefactsonthesheet.Allthreesaidthattheywereawareofthesideeffectsofplasticwaterbottlespriortothisexperiment.

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Methodology & Findings

Inordertohaveawidevarietyofinformationconcerningwaterbottlebehavior,weconductedafocusgroupwithfivestudentsintheEnvironment391class.Wedecidedthatafocusgroupwouldbemostbeneficialbecausewewantedtoencourageadiscussionamongenvironmentallyconsciousstudents.Whatwediscoveredwasthatallthesestudentsusereusablewaterbottlesandthatforthemostpart,theyusethembecausetheyhavelearnedthattheyarebetterfortheenvironment.Becauseallthesestudentsusereusablewaterbottles,wewantedtolearnwhatotherfactorsinfluencetheirbehaviorandhowtheybelieveotherpeoplecanbeinfluencedconcerningwaterbottleusage.Inadditiontoenvironmentalconcerns,convenienceseemedtobeastrongreasonforusingareusablewaterbottle.Whenaskediftheyhadbackgroundexperiencesthatinfluencedthemtouseareusablewaterbottle,moststudentsagreedthatenvironmentaleducationduringhighschoolwasinfluential.Inadditiontoeducation,havingspentalotoftimeoutsidegrowingupanddevelopinganappreciationfornaturewasalsoacommonreason.Wealsoaskediftheirparentsusedreusablewaterbottlesandweretoldthatmostofthesestudentshadencouragedtheirparentstodoso. OnestudentexplainedthatherparentsarefromIndiaandhavedifferentviewsoftapwaterthanwedointheUnitedStates.Thoughshehastriedtoexpresstheimportanceofusingreusablewaterbottlestoherpar-ents,theirattitudetowardtapwaterhasbeendifficultforhertoalter.Thegroupagreedthatpeoplefromothercountriesandcertainculturesoftenhavepredeterminedviewsoftapwaterthataredifficulttochange,evenwitheducationonthetopic.AttheUniversityofMichigan,wehavemanyinternationalstudents.Thegroupagreedthatinternationalstudentsareoftenmoreconcernedaboutthequalityoftapwaterbasedontheirviewsoftapwaterfromtheirhomecountry.Thisgroupsuggestedthatfocusingattentiononeducatingandchangingthewaterbottlebehaviorofinternationalstudentscouldbeespeciallybeneficial. Weaskedwhytheythinkpeoplestillbuybottledwater,andthegeneralconsensuswasthatpeoplethinkbottledwateriscleaner,moreconvenient,andmanypeopleforgettobringtheirreusablewaterbottlesevery-wheretheygo.Thisgroupofstudentsthinksthatmakingrefillstationsforreusablewaterbottlesmoreprevalentandaccessibleoncampuswouldencouragemorestudentstousereusablewaterbottles.Theyalsoagreethatstudentsneedtobebettereducatedontheimpactthatusingdisposablewaterbottleshasontheenvironment. Thesestudentsbelievethatasstudentsinenvironmentalclasses,theyareinfluencedbyfellowenviron-mentalstudent’sbehaviorandwouldnotwanttohavedisposablewaterbottlesintheirenvironmentalclasses.However,theydonotfeelthiswayintheirnon-environmentalclassesandnoticethatmorestudentsintheseclassesusedisposablewaterbottles.

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Whileanalyzingallofourresultsforeachprojectwediscoveredcross-studytrends.Wefoundthatitisinconvenientforstudentstocleantheirreusablewaterbottlesparticularlyintheresidencehalls.OurresultsalsoindicatedthatthereisalackofeducationregardingthequalityandsafetyofAnnArbor’stapwateramongtheUniversity’sstudents.Peerinfluencewasfoundtoeffectstudentwaterbottlebehavior.Inaddition,wediscov-eredthatprovidingfreereusablewaterbottlestostudentsandeducatingstudentsthroughvisualmeanscanef-fectivelychangebehavior.Theseoverallfindingsguidedusincreatingrecommendationstoincreasestudentuseofreusablewaterbottles.


15

Aftercompilingalltheresultsfromthemultiplestudiesweconducted,wehavedeterminedthatthereareseveralactionsthatvariousUofMdepartmentscoulddoinordertoalignwiththeUniversityofMichigan’scommitmenttosustainability.

1. Install cleaning sinks for water bottles in residence halls. Webelievethatinstallingcleaningsinksforwaterbottlesinthedormitorieswouldmakeusingareus-ablewaterbottlemoreconvenientforstudents.Asmanyofourrespondentsliveinthedorms,wereceivedmanycommentsaboutthedifficultiesofcleaningouttheirwaterbottles.WesuggestthatUniversityHousinginstallmoresinksfortheuseofwaterbottlecleaning.Wesuggestlabelingthesesinksasdesignatedwaterbottlecleaningstationsinordertopromotetheiruse.Wealsorecommendpostingthesepromptsatexistingresidencehallcleaningsinks.

2. Provide prompts on existing drinking fountains. WealsosuggestthatPlanetBluecreatepromptstobeputabovedrinkingfountains,remindingstudentstofilltheirreusablewaterbottleswithAnnArbor’ssafetapwater.Wefoundthatvisualmethodsofeducationwereveryeffectiveandbelievethatpromptswithsimpleimagesremindingstudentsto“TurnontheTap”wouldbeaneasywaytopromotesustainabilityoncampus.Thiswouldbeaninexpensive,educationalcampaigntoencouragetheuseoftapwater,emphasizingthequalityofAnnArbor’stapwatertocorrectanymisconceptionsthatthetapwaterisnotsafe.

3. Incorporate water bottle education into freshmen and international student orientations. Whilemoststudentsinvolvedinenvironmentalclassesandactivitiesseemwellinformedonsustainablewaterbottlepractices,welearnedthatmanyotherstudentsmaynotbeexposedtothisinformation.WethinkthatitisnecessarytoincludewaterbottleeducationinUofMorientations.Todothis,wesuggestmakingthewaterbottlerefillstationsastoppingpointduringthecampustour.AtthistimewethinkorientationleadersshoulddiscusshowusingreusablewaterbottlesisapartoftheUniversity’ssustainabilityinitiative.WealsorecommendthatorientationleadersandUofMtourguidesbeprovidedwithreusablewaterbottleswiththeUniversityofMichigan’slogoandberequiredtocarryitaroundduringorientation.Thiswouldhelpestablishreusablewaterbottleuseasanormoncampus,motivatingstudentwaterbottleusage. Inadditiontothefreshmanstudentorientation,wealsorecommendthatreusablewaterbottleuseandtapwaterqualitybeespeciallyemphasizedattheinternationalstudentorientations.Welearnedthatoftenbe-causeofthewaterqualityinothercountries,internationalstudentsaremorehesitanttodrinktapwateratUofM.WesuggestthatthequalityandsafetyofAnnArbor’stapwaterbeemphasizedattheinternationalstudentorientation. WealsorecommendthatallstudentsattheseorientationsbegivenafreereusablewaterbottlewiththeUofMlogoonit.Webelievethatthiswouldfurtherpromotetheuseofreusablewaterbottlesoncampusbe-causewefoundthatstudentsaremorelikelytousethemwhentheyareprovidedforfree.

Recommendations

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4. Encourage U of M departments and campus groups to distribute free water bottles that are easy to use and clean. Wefoundthatthedistributionofwaterbottlesiseffectiveinencouragingreusablewaterbottleuse.

Therefore,wesuggestthatUofMdepartmentsandcampusgroupsdistributefreewaterbottlestomem-bersandatevents,asawayofadvertisingfortheirgroup.WealsoreceivedmanycommentsaboutthefunctionanddesignoftheLSAWaterThemeSemesterreusablewaterbottles.Welearnedhowimportantitisthatthesebottlesbedurableandeasytocleaninordertomotivateindividualstousethem.Webelievethatitwouldbebeneficialtodofurtherstudiesonwhattypesofwaterbottlesaremostappealingandusefultostudents,encour-agingthedistributionofthesespecificwaterbottles.

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Throughoutourvariousresearchprojectsthissemester,wehavediscoveredthattherearemanyfactorstoconsiderinunderstandingwaterbottlebehavior.Wewereabletoaddressmanyoftheseaspectsthroughourdifferentmethodsofstudy.Ourstudieshaveshownthattherearestillareasforfurtherresearchsuchaswhichtypesofreusablewaterbottlesaremostappealingtostudentsandwhethercertainwaterbottledesignsmoreef-fectivelycatertodifferentsocialgroups.IncreasingawarenessandunderstandingofwaterconservationamongstudentsisnecessarytomaintaintheUniversity’scommitmenttosustainability.WehopethatourresearchandrecommendationswillhelppromotemoresustainablebehaviorontheUniversityofMichigancampus.

Conclusion and Lessons Learned

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Endnotes

1.DeYoung,Raymond.“ChangingBehaviorandMakingitStick:TheConceptualizationandManagement ofConservationBehavior.”EnvironmentandBehavior25.4July(1993): 485-505.

2.Earle,SylviaA.TheWorldisBlue:Howourfateandtheocean’sareone.Washington,D.C.:NationalGeo graphicSociety,2009.

3.“PlanetBlueNewsletter-NovemberIssue.”PlanetBlue-UniversityofMichigan.PlanetBlue,8Nov.2010. Web.20Apr.2011.<http://www.planetblue.umich.edu/news.php?nid=47>.

4.Cialdini,RobertB.,NoahJ.Goldstein,andVladasGriskevicius.“ARoomwithaViewpoint:UsingSocial NormstoMotivateEnvironmentalConservationinHotels.”JournalofConsumerResearch35 Oct.(2008):472-82.

Water Bottle & Fact Sheet Study

Surveys:

Initial Survey:(DistributedinpersonatvariousUMlocationstostudentswhowerecarryingordrinkingbottledwater)

Pleasefilloutthefollowingsurveyforastudyonwaterbottleusage.Byparticipating,youareagreeingtoletuscontactyouviaemailthreeadditionaltimesduringthesemester,includingafollowupemailinthenextcoupleofdays,abriefmidtermsurvey,andabrieffinalsurvey.Ifyoucompleteallthreesurveysyouwillbeenteredtowina$50giftcardtoBivouac,UrbanOutfitters,Chipotle,orEspressoRoyale,yourchoice!

1.Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Lessthanafewtimesamonth

2.Whydoyoudrinkbottledwater?(Circleallthatapply) a.Convenience b.Bottledwatertastesbetterthantapwater c.Bottledwateriscleaner d.Other:_________________________________

3.Whenyoupurchasebottledwateritis: a.Onlyindividualbottles b.Onlypackage/cases c.BothAandB


Appendix

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4.Doyourecycleyourplasticwaterbottlesafteruse? a.Always b.Sometimes c.Never

5.Doyouownareusablewaterbottle? a.Yes b.No

Ifyes,howoftendoyouuseit? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Never

Ifno,whynot?Pleaseexplain: _____________________________________

6.Howmanyofyourroommatesuseareusablewaterbottle? a.Ilivealone b.None c.Afew d.Several e.Amajority

7.Whatisyouruniquename?(Wewillonlybesendingyouthreebriefemails.)

8.Whatisyourmajor,doublemajor,and/orminor?

9.Academicyear: a.Freshman b.Sophomore c.Junior d.Senior e.Master’s f.Ph.D.

10.Gender: a.Man b.Woman

11.Doyouliveina: a.Apartment b.House c.Dormitory d.Sorority/fraternity e.Cooperative f.Other:_______________________________

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Mid-Surveys: (Distributedthroughemailandcreatedonsurveymonkey.com.Eachgroupreceivedadifferentsurveydependingonwhatmaterialstheyweregivenwiththeinitialsurvey.)

Mid-term Survey Fact Sheet Group

1.Whatisyouruniquename?

2.Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth e.Never

3.Doyourecycleyourplasticwaterbottlesafteruse? a.Always b.Sometimes c.Never d.Idonotpurchasebottledwater

4.Doyouuseareusablewaterbottle? a.Yes b.No

5.IfyouansweredYES,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforusingareusablewaterbottle:

(X=NoOpinion1=Notatall2=NotVeryWell3=Somewhat4=PrettyWell5=ExtremelyWell)

X12345 Environmentalpurposes X12345 Tapwateriscleaner X12345 Tapwatertastesbetter X12345 Myfriendsuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Itsavesmemoney X12345 Itisconvenient X12345 Ilikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain____________________

6.IfyouansweredNO,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforNOTusingareusablewaterbottle:


X12345 MyfriendsDONOTuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Iuseadifferentreusablewaterbottle X12345 Bottledwaterismoreconvenient X12345 Bottledwateriscleaner X12345 Bottledwatertastesbetter X12345 IdoNOTlikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain_____________________

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7.Youweregivenagreenwaterbottleinformationsheetwhenyoutookthefirstsurvey.Towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourattitudeaboutreceivingit?


X12345 IfoundtheInformationveryinteresting X12345 Ifoundthepicturestobeeffective X12345 Itinfluencedmetousethereusablewaterbottle X12345 Ididnotlearnanythingnew X12345 Idisagreewiththeinformation X12345 Ididnotreadit X12345 Idonotrememberreceivingit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain___________________

Mid-Term Survey: Water Bottle Group




4.WhenyoucompletedthefirstsurveyyouweregivenaLSAWaterThemeSemesterreusablewaterbottle.Sincereceivingthereusablewaterbottle,howoftenhaveyouusedit? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Never

5.IfyouUSEtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterwaterbottle,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourrea-sonsforusingit:



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6.IfyouDONOTUSEtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterwaterbottle,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforNOTusingit:



7.TowhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourattitudeaboutreceivingtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterreus-ablewaterbottle:


X12345 Ienjoyedreceivingthem X12345 Ididnotneedareusablewaterbottle X12345 Ifeltpressuredtousethereusablewaterbottle X12345 Ifeltannoyed X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain___________________

Mid-term Survey: Water Bottle & Fact Sheet Group




4.WhenyoucompletedthefirstsurveyyouweregivenaLSAWaterThemeSemesterreusablewaterbottle.Sincereceivingthereusablewaterbottle,howoftenhaveyouusedit? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Never 23



X12345 Environmentalpurposes X12345 Tapwateriscleaner X12345 Tapwatertastesbetter X12345 Myfriendsuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Itsavesmemoney X12345 Itisconvenient X12345 Ilikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain____________________6.IfyouDONOTUSEtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterwaterbottle,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforNOTusingit:



7.Youwerealsogivenagreenwaterbottleinformationsheetwhenyoutookthefirstsurvey.Towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourattitudeaboutreceivingit?


X12345 IfoundtheInformationveryinteresting X12345 Ifoundthepicturestobeeffective X12345 Itinfluencedmetousethereusablewaterbottle X12345 Ididnotlearnanythingnew X12345 Idisagreewiththeinformation X12345 Ididnotreadit X12345 Idonotrememberreceivingit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain___________________

8.TowhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourattitudeaboutreceivingtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterreus-ablewaterbottleandinformationsheet:


X12345 Ienjoyedreceivingthem X12345 Ididnotneedareusablewaterbottle X12345 Ifeltpressuredtousethereusablewaterbottle X12345 Ifeltannoyed X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain___________________ 24

Final Surveys: (Eachgroupreceivedadifferentsurveybelowdependingonwhatmaterialstheyweregivenwiththeinitialsurvey.)

Final Survey- Fact Sheet Group











25

7.Howstronglydoyouagreewiththefollowingstatements?

(X=NoOpinion1=StronglyDisagree2=Disagree3=Neutral4=Agree5=StronglyAgree)

X12345 Thisstudyhasmadememoreawareofmy bottledwaterdrinkinghabits X12345 IpurchaselessbottledwaterthanbeforeI startedparticipatinginthisstudy X12345 Thisstudyinfluencedmetolearnmore abouttheenvironmentalimpactsof bottledwater X12345 IhaveattendedatleastoneLSAWater ThemeSemesterevent

Final Survey: Water Bottle Group




4.SinceyoucompletedthesecondsurveyonlinehowoftenhaveyouusedtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterwaterbottle? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Never



X12345 Environmentalpurposes X12345 Tapwateriscleaner X12345 Tapwatertastesbetter X12345 Myfriendsuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Itsavesmemoney X12345 Itisconvenient X12345 Ilikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain________________

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X12345 MyfriendsDONOTuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Iuseadifferentreusablewaterbottle X12345 Bottledwaterismoreconvenient X12345 Bottledwateriscleaner X12345 Bottledwatertastesbetter X12345 IdoNOTlikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________




Final Survey: Water Bottle & Fact Sheet Group




4.SinceyoucompletedthesecondsurveyonlinehowoftenhaveyouusedtheLSAWaterThemeSemesterwaterbottle? a.Everyday b.Afewtimesaweek c.Afewtimesamonth d.Never

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X12345 MyfriendsDONOTuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Iuseadifferentreusablewaterbottle X12345 Bottledwaterismoreconvenient X12345 Bottledwateriscleaner X12345 Bottledwatertastesbetter X12345 IdoNOTlikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________




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Graphs:

Figure 1:Thisgraphshowsthepercentagesofresponsesinthefinalsurveyofthe11studentswhoreceivedafactsheet.Theywereasked,“Howstronglydoyouagreewiththefollowingstatements?”

29

Figure 2: Thisgraphshowsthepercentagesofresponsesinthefinalsurveyofthe15studentswhoreceivedareusablewaterbottle.Theywereasked,“Howstronglydoyouagreewiththefollowingstatements?”

30

Figure 3: Thisgraphshowsthepercentagesofresponsesinthefinalsurveyofthe16studentswhoreceivedbothareusablewaterbottleandafactsheet.Theywereasked,“Howstronglydoyouagreewiththefollowingstatements?”

31

Figure 4: Thisgraphshowsthepercentagesofindividuals’responsestotheinitialsurveywhenasked,“Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater?”Onlythe42individuals’datathatcompletedthefinalsurveywereused.

Figure 5:Thisgraphshowsthepercentagesofthe42individuals’responsestothefinalsurveywhenasked,“Howoftendoyoudrinkbottledwater?”Incomparisontotheirresponsesinfigure4,thenumberofstudentswhodrankbottledwatereverydaydecreasedfrom38.1%to14.3%.Againonlythe42individuals’datathatcompletedthefinalsurveywereused,inordertoaccuratelycomparetheirinitialsurveyresponsestotheirfinalsurveyresponses.

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Fact Sheet:

(Front) (Back)

LSA Theme Semester Reusable Water Bottle:

33

Class Presentation Study

Surveys:

Class Presentation Initial Survey:


2.Whydoyoudrinkbottledwater?(circleallthatapply) a.Convenience b.Bottledwatertastesbetterthantapwater c.Bottledwateriscleaner d.Other:________________________________

3.Whenyoupurchasebottledwateryoubuy: a.Individualbottles b.Package/cases c.BothAandB


5.Doyouownareusablewaterbottle? a.Yes b.No


Doyouhaveyourreusablewaterbottlewithyounow? a.Yes b.No

Ifyoudon’thaveyourreusablewaterbottlewithyounow,whynot? a.Idon’townone b.Iforgotit c.Ihaven’tcleanedit d.It’sinconvenienttocarry e.Other(pleaseexplain)____________________________________________

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6.Howmanyofyourfriendsuseareusablewaterbottle? a.None b.Afew c.Several d.Amajority

7.Whatisyourmajor,doublemajor,and/orminor?

8.Academicyear: a.Freshman b.Sophomore c.Junior d.Senior e.Master’s f.Ph.D.

9.Gender: a.Male b.Female

10.Doyouliveina: a.Apartment b.House c.Dormitory d.Sorority/fraternity e.Cooperative f.Other:_________________________

Class Presentation Post Survey:





35






X12345 MyfriendsDONOTuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Bottledwaterismoreconvenient X12345 Bottledwateriscleaner X12345 Bottledwatertastesbetter X12345 Idonotwanttospendmoneyonareusablewaterbottle X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________

6.Towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourattitudeaboutreceivingtheshortpresentationinclassaboutbottledwaterusage:


X12345 Ifoundtheinformationveryinteresting X12345 Ifoundthepicturestobeeffective X12345 Itinfluencedmetouseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Ididnotlearnanythingnew X12345 Idisagreewiththeinformation X12345 Iwasnotinclassthisday X12345 Idonotrememberreceivingit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________

Michigan Community Scholars Program Study

Survey:

1.DoyoustillusethereusablewaterbottlethatyouweregivenbyMCSPinthebeginningoftheschoolyear? a.Yes b.No

2.IfyouansweredYES,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforusingtheMCSPreusablewaterbottle?

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(X=NoOpinion,1=NotatAll,2=NotVeryWell,3=Somewhat,4=VeryWell,5=ExtremelyWell)

X12345 Mostofmyfriendsuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 CarryingitaroundallowsmetorepresentMCSP X12345 Itsavesmemoney X12345 Itisconvenient X12345 Itisgoodfortheenvironment X12345 Ilikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________

3.IfyouansweredNO,towhatdegreedotheitemsbelowmatchyourreasonsforNOTusingtheMCSPreus-ablewaterbottle?

(X=NoOpinion,1=NotatAll,2=NotVeryWell,3=Somewhat,4=VeryWell,5=ExtremelyWell)

X12345 MostofmyfriendsDONOTuseareusablewaterbottle X12345 Iuseadifferentreusablewaterbottle X12345 Bottledwaterismoreconvenient X12345 Bottledwateriscleaner X12345 Bottledwatertastesbetter X12345 IdoNOTlikethedesignofit X12345 Other:Pleaseexplain__________________

Graphs:

Figure 6:Thenumberofrespondentsthatanswered“ExtremelyWell”intheMCSPSurveywhenasked,“IfyoustillusetheMCSPreusablewaterbottle,towhatdegreedothefollowingitemsmatchyourreasonsforusingit?”23studentsrespondedtothisquestion.

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Figure 7: Thenumberofrespondentsthatanswered“ExtremelyWell”intheMCSPSurveywhenasked,“IfyoudonotusetheMCSPreusablewaterbottle,towhatdegreedothefollowingitemsmatchyourreasonsfornotusingit?”14studentsrespondedtothisquestion.

Focus Group Study

Focus Group Questions:

1.Howlonghaveyoubeenusingreusablewaterbottles? 2.Whatledyoutouseareusablewaterbottle? 3.Haveyourreasonstouseareusablewaterbottlechangedsincethen? 4.Whydoyouthinkpeoplechoosenottousereusablewaterbottles/buydisposablewaterbottles? 5.Whatdoyouthinkcouldchangethis/encouragemorepeopletousereusablewaterbottles? 6.Doyoufeelthatthereareanysocialnormsatplayconcerningwaterbottleusage? a.Inenvironmentalclasses? b.Innon-environmentclasses?

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