Anti-litter bins : persuasion through non-interactive design

Norms are effective in guiding behaviour, but only when they are active at the time of action. Two studies were performed to test littering norm activation by bin design. The first was a scenario, showing that explicit norm activation was more effective than implicit activation through design. However, the various types of norms showed the same pattern of effects for both explicit and implicit activation. The field study showed that both explicit norm activation through a verbal prompt and implicit activation through design had significant effects, reducing the amount of litter by 50%. Effectiveness of activation by design was even slightly more effective than explicit activation. Within the context of persuasive technology, the study demonstrates that even noninteractive design and technology can instigate major behaviour changes.