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Next steps for research on society and microplastics
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This perspective paper assessed the contributions of social and behavioral sciences to microplastics research, covering policy analysis, public education, and stakeholder engagement. The authors argue for greater integration of social science methods to understand and reduce plastic pollution at the human systems level.
Microplastics pollution, like many other environmental problems, is caused by human decisions and societal systems. The social and behavioural sciences have been active contributors to microplastics research from early on, analysing policy processes, stakeholder views, education efforts and much more. Considerable research has also described public opinion and commented on its importance in triggering policy action, particularly in terms of solutions early in the lifecycle of plastics rather than at its end-of-life. Focusing on the topics of risk perception and policy support, the present talk discusses what gaps remain and where to go next, suggesting contextual analysis and a stronger focus on conceptual / theoretical approaches as two potential avenues. Two examples will be given. First, drawing on new large-scale survey European data from the SOS-ZEROPOL2030 project (https://soszeropol2030.eu/), perceptions of microplastics risks and solutions as well as their drivers will be presented in the context of other marine pollutants (e.g., PFAS). This analysis of similarities and differences between different risks, as opposed to a focus on a single risk, has the potential to provide more robust insights and inform better communications. Second, work from the Plenty project (https://microplastics.univie.ac.at/about-us/) will be presented, which focuses on microplastics in food and drink as an emerging area of concern. This used interviews with involved groups and a representative public survey to examine how social, affective and cognitive factors interact in predicting policy support. On the basis of these examples we will sketch out some next steps for social and behavioural sciences research on microplastics, of course inviting further ideas and discussion from the audience. Also see: https://micro2024.sciencesconf.org/559594/document
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