Behavioral change in waste separation at source in Chile: an application of the theory of planned behavior

Understanding how individuals engage in waste separation is a central challenge in sustainability and waste management, particularly in relation to their perceptions of public institutions. While governments and municipalities have implemented multiple initiatives to promote pro-environmental behavior, the effectiveness of these efforts is closely related to the behavioral factors associated with household decision-making. This study examines the key factors associated with waste separation intentions in several cities in southern Chile using an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) framework. The survey instrument incorporates additional constructs, including information availability, perceived role of municipalities and willingness to pay. Using structural equation modeling, the results indicate that subjective norms and perceived behavioral control are strongly associated with behavioral intention, while attitudes are not significantly related to intention. Information provided by municipalities is indirectly associated with intention through its relationships with attitudes and perceived behavioral control. The findings highlight the relevance of social influence, perceived feasibility, and access to information as factors associated with pro-environmental intentions. However, given the cross-sectional design of the study, these results should be interpreted as associations rather than causal relationships or observed behavioral change. These insights contribute to the extension of TPB in the context of environmental behavior and provide indicative implications for the design of waste management policies.