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Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving improved water supply: A gender-based analysis
Accepted Manuscript Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving improved water supply: A gender-based analysis Yan Tong, Liangxin Fan, Haipeng Niu PII:
S0959-6526(16)31510-4
DOI:
10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.09.169
Reference:
JCLP 8129
To appear in:
Journal of Cleaner Production
Received Date: 20 April 2016 Revised Date:
19 September 2016
Accepted Date: 21 September 2016
Please cite this article as: Tong Y, Fan L, Niu H, Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving improved water supply: A gender-based analysis, Journal of Cleaner Production (2016), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.09.169. This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
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Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving
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improved water supply: a gender-based analysis
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Yan Tong Liangxin Fan* Haipeng Niu
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School of Surveying and Land Information Engineering, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, Henan
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454003, China
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Abstract: Adoption of water conservation practices (WCPs) is essential to save water. However, the
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factors that affect changes in behaviour related to water consumption remain unclear, particularly those
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related to gender differences and women’s views towards WCPs. These factors often result in
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ineffective public policies. In this study, we analysed the effects of consciousness, perceptions and
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individual behaviour control towards WCPs, as well as the influence of gender (i.e. male and female)
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on residents’ WCPs via a detailed survey of 622 residents (female: 318, male: 304) in rural northern
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China. Data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA and structural equation model. The respondents
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had a high degree of awareness of WCPs but reported low participation in WCPs, particularly among
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male users. Female users consumed twice as much water and adopted more WCPs than male users.
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Saving water bill was the main incentive for female users to practise WCPs, whereas that for male
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users was to alleviate water supply shortage. Daily routine changes and additional time and physical
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efforts were the main barriers for WCPs, particularly for male users. In addition, WCPs of male users
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were highly affected by individual behaviour control and attitude towards conservation, whereas for
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female users, WCPs were highly affected by expected results and social norms. The significant gender
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disparities in the results emphasise the need to ensure information transparency and communication
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across gender, users, and authorities in public policies and community programs to fix gender gaps and
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to enhance adoption of WCPs by the public.
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Keywords: domestic water consumption; water-use behaviour; gender disparity; survey; rural China
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*Corresponding author: [email protected] (Liangxin Fan)
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1. Introduction
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Water for domestic use is vital to household daily routines, hygiene and therefore public health.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT However, in rural areas of less developed countries, water delivery is consistently weak because high
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water quality is required and large investments typically necessary for equipments. In such areas,
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almost 748 million people lack access to sufficient safe drinking water, and 2.4 billion people continue
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to lack access to hygienic sanitation facilities (WHO/UNICEF, 2015). Governments, The World Health
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Organization (WHO) and various other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have sought to
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improve water delivery systems to ensure safe water supply in underdeveloped countries. As a result of
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their efforts, more than 2.6 billion people gained safe access to drinking water between 1995 to 2015.
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Currently, 90% of the world’s population has access to safe drinking water (WHO/UNICEF, 2015). In
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China, approximately USD 16.5 billion was invested in water delivery systems from 2006 to 2010, and
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more than 520,000 centralised water supply systems were built for 58% of the total rural population by
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the end of 2010 (Li et al., 2015).
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Unsurprisingly, water consumption for domestic use almost doubled in households that had newly
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gained access to improved water supply (Florke et al., 2013). In rural China, residents increased water
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use from 46.5 L/c/d (liters per capita per day) to 71.3 L/c/d after tap water supply became available
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(Fan et al., 2014a). In rural Malawi, residents consumed 9.7 L/c/d before and 15.3 L/c/d after
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community taps were installed (Lindskog and Lundqvist, 1989). The designed water delivery capacity
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often does not meet increasing demands for water, which poses a barrier to safe water supply in rural
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areas even after receiving improved water supply (Zhou and Zhou, 2009). Therefore, restrictive
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policies such as intermittent water supply and increased water prices are widely implemented at local
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levels. However, such policies have been criticised in many studies for their inequitable effects,
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sanitation risks and ability to cause water panic (Kumpel and Nelson, 2013).
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Since increase in water delivery capacity is affected heavily by restrictions of economic, environmental
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and water resource endowment, more and more governments, NGOs and scientists have cooperatively
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sought solutions to reduce residents’ demands (UNDP, 2012). Several measures have been proposed to
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achieve significant water savings. The most effective measures include use of water-efficient
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appliances (low-flow showerhead and taps, water-efficient washing machines and dishwashers) and
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encouraging residents to adapt pro-environmental behaviour through pricing, education and awareness,
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restriction of water supply and rebate schemes (Shove et al., 2010). In the Australian Capital Territory,
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domestic water consumption was reduced by an average of 19% from 2001 to 2004 through education
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT programmes and demand management (Dolnicar et al., 2012). In England, domestic water consumption
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is predicted to drop by 13.3% in 2030 via water use behaviour change (Shove et al., 2010). However,
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achieving water saving through behaviour change is difficult. Education and public awareness
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campaigns reduced water consumption by 57% in Melbourne (Bryx and Bromberg, 2009). By contrast,
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such strategies produced less than 20% reduction in California (Renwick and Green 2000) and Saudi
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Arabia (Abdulrazzak and Khan, 1990). Residents may be reluctant to change their behaviour because
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of personal characteristics, consciousness, habits and even gender disparity (Fan et al., 2014b).
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In rural developing countries, women and girls are recognised as primary stakeholders in household
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daily activities, including fetching water, cleaning, cooking, washing and sanitation, as opposed to men
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(Garcetti and Kevany, 2013). However, females are not usually considered as equals to males in
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participating in water governance (Das, 2014) because of gender discrimination, lack of knowledge,
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tradition and culture limitations (Caruso et al., 2015). As a result, the views and feelings of females, as
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well as gender disparity towards use and conservation behaviours are consistently ignored in public
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policies (Meza, 2013). Such neglect results in inefficient water resource management (Akli and Bedrani,
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2014). Therefore, understanding female views, consciousness and perceptions towards water use
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behaviours and gender disparity is essential to formulate effective public policies (Schneiderman and
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Reddock, 2004). However, studies on these topics are few and far between.
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This study aims (1) to quantify and categorise the difference in knowledge, perceptions and behaviour
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with regard to domestic water consumption between males and females in rural areas of the Wei River
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basin, (2) to identify key gender disparity-related factors that affect residents’ water use behaviour, and
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(3) to explore and recommend public policies to guide residents to adopt water saving practices and use
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water wisely.
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2. Materials and Methods
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2.1. Study area
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The study was conducted in the Shannxi Plain (104°00’–110°10’E, 33°50’–37°18’N) in the middle and
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lower Wei River basin, North China (Fig. 1). The total area of the study region is approximately 34000
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km2. The climate is temperate and semi-humid with annual temperatures of 7.8–13.5 °C. Annual
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rainfall is 450–700 mm, and annual evaporation is 1000–2000 mm (Fan et al., 2014a). It is the most
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT extensively cultivated region in the Wei River basin and has a flat terrain, fertile soil and
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well-developed irrigation systems. The plain comprises 75% of irrigated land, 56% of cultivated land,
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64% of the total population and more than 65% of the GDP of the entire basin (Fan et al., 2014b).
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The region has approximately 30 million people, more than half of whom live in rural villages scattered
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across the plain (Huang et al., 2014). Ensuring safe water supply for daily use by rural residents is the
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main issue faced by the local government. Heavily polluted surface water makes the situation worse—
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more than 94% of the water supply for domestic use is sourced from underground water (Fan et al.,
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2014a). In the last decade, the Mother Cistern Project (2001–2011) and the Chinese Safe Drinking
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Water Project (2005–2015) have been implemented in the Shannxi Plain to ensure safe water supply.
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The “Mother’s Cistern Project” was launched by the China Women’s Development Foundation, one of
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the largest NGOs in China, which operates with the motto “Donate Love to Poor Mothers in Western
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China” (China Daily, 2002). “The Chinese Safe Drinking Water Project” is the largest project in rural
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drinking water supply run by the Chinese government and aims to “completely solving rural drinking
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water safety issues”. Over 15 million rural residents in the Shannxi Plain have gained access to
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improved water supply from the two projects (Shannxi Daily, 2015). Currently, more than 80% of rural
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residents in the Shannxi Plain receive tap water from independent water supply systems run by villages
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and towns. Water supply capacities have drastically improved. However, water consumption per capita
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for domestic use has also increased because of convenience of fetching water and pursuit of good living
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conditions. The designed water delivery system has thus been unable to match the increased demand
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for water consumption. As a result, 30% of villages that receive tap water supply have had to adopt
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intermittent modes of water supply to restrict water consumption.
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2.2. Survey design and data collection
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We conducted a questionnaire survey through face-to-face interviews from April to August 2014. We
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randomly chose 622 residents (female: 318, male: 304) who were potentially willing to participate in
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the survey. These residents came from 622 households that received tap water supply in the districts of
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Baoji (female: 95; male: 94), Yanglin-Wugong (female: 122; male: 113) and Weinan (female: 101;
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male: 97) in the Guanzhong-Tianshui economic zone. These three districts are located in the Shannxi
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Plain and have similar climate and socio-economic characteristics. They are all covered by the Chinese
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Safe Drinking Water Project (2005–2015) and the Mother Cisterns Project (2001–2011). The
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT proportions of residents in rural areas in the three districts who received tap water supply are as follows:
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Baoji: 72%, Yanglin-Wugong: 83% and Weinan: 78%. Written informed consent for data collection
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was obtained before conducting the face-to face interviews. Participation was entirely voluntary, and
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the participants could freely refuse to answer questions without providing justification. Each participant
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received household items (towels, soap and shampoo) worth USD 1.6 as economic compensation. We
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had 13 refusals, 18 incomplete questionnaires and 591 complete questionnaires (female: 305, male: 286)
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(Table 1).
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The questionnaire was used to get information on the characteristics of the water users (age,
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educational level, household income and net family size) and 25 items on attitude towards conservation
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(AC; six items), expected results (saving water bills, alleviating water shortage and protecting the
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environment) (ER; four items), individual behaviour control (perceived ease or difficulty of performing
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water conservation) (BC; two items), social norms (public perception and attitudes of authorities
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toward water conservation) (SN; two items) and water conservation practices (WCPs; eleven items)
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(Table 2). We used a five-point Likert scale (Likert, 1932) (1=very unlikely, 2= unlikely, 3= neither
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unlikely nor likely, 4= likely, and 5=very likely) to quantify the questionnaire responses. Higher scores
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indicated greater likelihood.
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2.3 Data analysis
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Data from the 591 completed questionnaires were coded and analysed using SPSS 15.0 and Amos 7.0.
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We assessed internal consistency of the questionnaire items using Cronbach’s α test. The categories AC,
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ER, BC, SN and WCPs had α values of 0.823, 0.835, 0.962, 0.948 and 0.802 respectively. A value
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higher than 0.7 indicated good internal consistency (Chung et al., 1998). We compared the
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characteristics, attitudes, perceptions, perceived social norms and individual behaviour control as well
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as water use practices between male and female farmers. We calculated the means ± standard
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deviations, applied the Kolmogorov–Smirnov (KS) test to assess normality of the data distribution and
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used one-way ANOVA followed by post-hoc LSD tests for comparisons. Statistical significance was
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set at p<0.05. We utilized a structural equation model (SEM) in Amos 7.0 to identify relationships
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among the characteristics, attitude, perceptions, social norms and individual behaviour control towards
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WCPs in the male and female respondents.
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3. Results
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT 3.1 Social-economic characteristics of the respondents
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The respondents (male: 286, female: 305) resided at the middle stream of the Wei River basin and all
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were covered by the Chinese Safe Drinking Water Project (2005–2015) with 24-hour piped water
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supply. The majority of household leaders were male (1.43±0.49). The annual household income of the
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respondents was USD 4268.09 (±2284.41) and net family size was 3.94 (±1.02). Female users were
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younger (45.62±11.04 years) than male users (49.12±12.98 years) and had received less education
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(5.57±2.23 years) compared with male users (7.44±2.56 years) (Table 3).
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3.2 Water consumption and conservation practices of the respondents
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A total of 70.1 L/c/d (liters per capita per day) (indoor: 38.8 L, outdoor: 32.7 L) water were consumed
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by each household. Female users consumed twice as much water (93.0 L/c/d) as male users (46.7
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L/c/d), particularly for vegetable and garden watering (21.94±7.91), laundry (16.14±5.49 L/c/d) and
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kitchen use (16.20±5.07). In other water use items (house and yard cleaning, livestock, drinking and
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personal hygiene, and showering), female respondents also consumed more water than male responders
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(Fig. 2).
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A total of 11 conservation practices (WCPs) were adopted by the respondents during water use. These
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practices include personal hygiene (1 practice), showering (1 practice), laundry (2 practices), kitchen (3
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practices), house and yard cleaning (2 practices), and vegetable and gardening (2 practices). Female
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users reported using more WCPs than male users, especially in avoiding unnecessary water running
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(brushing teeth, washing face and hands-WCP1, showering-WCP2, and washing fruits and
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vegetables-WCP5), saving water (using duster cloth or a scraper while wiping dishes-WCP7 and using
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a broom or mopping while cleaning the yard-WCP8) and gray water reuse (WCP9) (Table 5).
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3.3 Attitude, expected results, individual behaviour control and social norms among genders
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The respondents had good awareness of environmental protection and relatively lower awareness of
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water conservation (Table 4). They were highly concerned with environmental issues that they faced
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and possessed good knowledge of environment protection and utilization. However, they lacked an
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understanding of relationships between water conservation and environment, as well as human
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performance. Male users had more knowledge and good attitude towards conservation than female
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users did, particularly with regard to environmental issues and protection (AC1 and AC2), the
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relationship between water conservation and environment, and human performance (AC5 and AC6).
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT The respondents reported that water conservation could significantly reduce water bills (ER3) and
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alleviate water shortages (ER2). Female users practised water conservation mainly to save water costs
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(ER3), whereas male users practised water conservation mainly to alleviate water supply shortage
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(ER2). The two genders did not believe that WCPs would change the environment significantly (ER4).
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The main barriers to practicing water conservation were daily routine changes (BC1) and the need for
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additional time and efforts (BC2), particularly for male users. Most respondents, especially males,
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believed that the public and water institutions are not actively implementing water saving campaigns.
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3.4 Factors that affect WCPs
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Factors that affected WCPs varied between females and males. The structural equation model (SEM) of
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WCP indicated that the WCPs of male users were highly affected by BC (standardised path coefficient,
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SPC=0.27) and AC (SPC=0.21). SN (SPC=0.13) and ER of male users moderately and weakly affected
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their WCPs respectively (Fig. 3). The WCPs of female users were highly affected by ER (SPC=0.30)
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and SN (SPC=0.24), moderately affected by awareness of BC (SPC=0.14) and weakly affected by AC
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(Fig. 4).
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4. Discussion
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Women consumed twice more water than men did in rural China. Water use by women was associated
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mainly with household care activities. This is consistent with previous reports that women are the main
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users of water and assume the primary role in household care in many less developed countries such as
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India (Upadhyay, 2005), Algeria (Akli and Bedrani, 2014), Mali (Shonsey and Gierke, 2013) and Brazil
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(Moraes and Rocha, 2013). Therefore, women’s perspectives on water resource management and
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conservation need to be highly emphasised.
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Significant differences between women and men exist with respect to fetching water (Upadhyay, 2005),
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using water (Caruso et al., 2015) and decision making and policy (Kholif and Elfarouk, 2014). Our
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study found that significant gaps exist between water conservation consciousness and behaviours of
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males and females. Women adopted more WCPs than men did; this finding is supported by
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Hablemitoglu and Ozmete (2010), who found that Turkish women practised 31 water-saving
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behaviours. Women adopted more WCPs than men in China mainly because of past experiences and
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memories of hard times of water shortage and inconvenience of collecting water before water supply
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improved. This finding is similar to a previous report of past experiences and memories affecting water
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT use behaviours (Urquijo and De Stefano, 2016) and making consumers use water carefully to some
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extent even after receiving tap water supply.
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Chan and Vilas (2007) emphasised that women are not only adopters of WCPs but are also responsible
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for educating children and supervising family members in performing these practices. The women in
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our study were less educated than men. Lack of sufficient education and even illiteracy of women in
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less developed countries are the main barriers to their ability to educate and supervise children and
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family members in water conservation (Fan et al., 2013). Data from UNESCO indicates that 771
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million adults in developing countries lack minimal literacy. An estimated 52.7% of the world’s
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illiterate population lives in India, China and Bangladesh (UNESCO, 2006). Of this figure, almost 500
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million are women (UN, 2015). Therefore, educating women is a critical step in the adoption of WCPs
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by the entire family and society.
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Gender refers not only to the literal meaning of women or men but also to their status, responsibilities,
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rights and participation in all areas and at all levels of social affairs, which include resource
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management, public authority and decision making. Therefore, gender disparities among males and
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females must be addressed. However, in reality, public water conservation policies are usually gender
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neutral, which indicates that gender disparities are overlooked (Singh, 2008). Our study found that the
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factors that affect WCPs vary significantly across genders. Female users adopt conservation practices
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mainly because of the expected positive results of conservation (saving water bills) and social norms
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(perception of public and authority towards water conservation practices). By contrast, adoption of
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conservation practices by men depends mainly on their attitude, individual behaviour control
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(perceptions of their daily routine change, time and physical effort spent practising water conservation)
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and social norms. Transparency of information regarding water consumption among users is important
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for water conservation (Liu et al., 2016); our study found that this factor is more important to female
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users than to male users. Women adopt WCPs mainly to save water costs. A water bill is the major
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indicator to users of the amount of water they use (Piccinin, 2004). However, some studies have
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reported that use of water bills to encourage WCPs among users yielded disappointing results in less
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developed countries (Fan et al., 2014b). The variety of water sources, poor facilities and management
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and inefficient fixed bills and bundles with other bills are the main barriers to low price transparency
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(Fan et al., 2013). Along with highly improved water supply and facilities through the efforts of
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT governments, NGOs and the WHO in less developed countries (WHO/UNICEF, 2015), a clear water
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bill and billing reform are needed to encourage water saving through improved information
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transparency.
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Social norms refer to individual behaviour that is considered acceptable (social values, customs and
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traditions) in a group or society (Lapinski and Rimal, 2005). These norms are composed of individual
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knowledge of what others do and what they think an individual should do (Cialdini, 2003). Our study
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found that such social norms affect the conservation behaviours of both male and female users. Syme
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and Jorgensen (1999) found that public perceptions of institutional and peer actions are a critical
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variable for behavioural change interventions. Jorgensen et al. (2009) confirmed that if the public
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perceives that water authorities and the rest of the public are untrustworthy, they will not follow their
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instructions to conserve water, thereby indicating the close links between trust and social norms.
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Trustworthy authorities and the public will promote the individual’s willingness to change his/her
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behaviour to adopt WCPs by improving the capacity of his/her behaviour control, which affects
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behaviour change in both males and females. Therefore, improving users’ trust in the public and the
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authorities are the key factors for instilling behavioural changes. Guivant (2003) found that users’ trust
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depends on the information they received and, to a certain extent, on their belief in information
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providers. However, such information is often lacking, vague and even self-contradictory because of
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poor management. This scenario also occurs in water management, particularly in newly improved
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water supply systems, in which the regime consistently hinders the need for effective management.
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Therefore, information transparency and communication among users, institutes and authorities is
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beneficial to build trust networks to improve social norms and capacity of individual behavior control
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of water conservation.
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5. Conclusion
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Continuous growth of gaps between delivery capacities and increasing water demand is a major threat
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to sustainable safe water supply and rural development. Inadequate WCPs of residents could be
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attributed to the perceived negative outcome of WCPs (negative perceptions of lowering water bills,
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alleviating water shortage and protecting the environment through WCPs), low individual behaviour
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control (rejection of daily routine change and negative perceptions of time and physical effort spent)
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and lack of social support (negative perceptions of the public and authorities toward water conservation
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT practices), particularly lack of consideration of gender disparity and women’s views on WCPs. Female
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users adopt WCPs mainly to save water costs, whereas male users practise WCPs mainly to alleviate
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water supply shortage. Reluctance to change daily routines and requirements of additional time and
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efforts are the main barriers to adoption of WCPs by male users, whereas lack of social support is the
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main barrier to adoption of WCPs by female users. The following community interventions should be
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considered to promote the WCPs of residents: (1) emphasising gender disparities and women’s
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perspectives while formulating public policy to promote water conservation and sustainable water
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resource management; (2) ensuring a clear water bill and billing reform to promote efficient water
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conservation by female users, and launching propaganda campaigns targeting men to encourage the
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WCPs of male users; and (3) improving information transparency and communication across genders,
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users, institutes and authorities to enhance social support for water conservation.
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Acknowledgement
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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41671514,
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41371524 and 41301617). The authors thank two anonymous reviewers and the editor for their
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valuable comments.
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Table 1. Demographic characteristics of the participants. District
Sampled households
Net family size
Annual household income (USD)
Water supply patterns
Water price (USD/m3)
Location
A
Weinan
189
4.0
4250
24-h piped water supply
0.35
34°45'N–34°49'N, 109°09'E– 09°15'E
B
YanglinWugong
229
3.9
4430
24-h piped water supply
0.27
34°17'N–34°20'N, 107°57'E–108°04'E
C
Baoji
173
4.2
4060
24-h piped water supply
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Sampled region
0.32
34°21'N–34°24'N, 107°24'E–107°29'E
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Note: Net household size is excluding members who reside outside the household for more than 8 months.
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Table 2. Measures and items of attitude, expected results, behaviour control, social norms and conservation practice towards water consumption.
Expected results (ER)
Individual behaviour control (BC)
Measurement items
AC1
Attitude towards environmental protection
The natural environment is very important and fragile.
AC2
Concern about environmental issues
In recent years, more frequent and serious natural disasters have been occurring.
AC3
Human and environment
Humans have the right to change nature to meet our daily needs.
AC4
Value of water resource
Water is a very important natural resource.
AC5
Water conservation and environment
Reducing water consumption is a way to protect the environment.
AC6
Water conservation and human
Saving water reflects civilisation and good behaviour.
ER1
Water conservation and supply
Water saving practices can solve the inadequate water supply.
ER2
Water conservation and shortage
Adopting conservation practices is important to solve the current water shortage.
ER3
Water conservation and bills
Water conservation will reduce water bills significantly.
ER4
Water conservation and environment
Water conservation will change the environment significantly.
BC1
Perceptions of daily routine change
Saving water will not change my daily lifestyle.
BC2
Perceptions of time and physical effort spent.
Saving water will not incur additional time and physical effort.
SN1
Perception of public behaviour
My neighbours, friends and family members practise water saving.
SN2
Perception of institution behaviour
Social norms (SN) WCP1
Personal hygiene
WCP2
Showering
WCP7 WCP8 WCP9 WCP10 WCP11
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Laundering full loads whenever possible
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Laundry
WCP5 WCP6
Turning off the faucet while brushing teeth or lathering your face and hands
Kitchen
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Water conservation practices (WCPs)
The entire society follows water saving campaigns and practises water saving.
Avoiding running water in the shower while shampooing hair and soaping body
WCP3 WCP4
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Indicators
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Attitude towards conservation (AC)
Item
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Factors
House and yard cleaning
Vegetable gardening
Hand washing several items at the same time and using the rinsing water from one group of items as the wash water for the next Avoiding the use of running water when washing fruits and vegetables; washing them in a basin Washing all the dishes together in a basin Avoiding unnecessary rinsing of dishes, wiping dishes with duster cloth or using a scraper to minimise rinsing Cleaning yards with a broom or mopping instead of using a hose Using gray water from washing machines to clean yards or to flush toilets Watering vegetable garden only in the evening or morning Watering vegetable garden less frequently
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Table 3. Social-economic characteristics of the respondents (mean±SD). Gender of respondents Socio-economic characteristic
Mean
Sig.
Male (M, n=286) Female (F, n=305) 1.42±0.49
1.44±0.50
1.43±0.49
0.690
Age (years)
49.12±12.98
45.62±11.04
47.31±12.20
0.000
Education (years)
7.44±2.56
5.57±2.23
Annual household income (USD) Net family size
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Gender of household leader
6.47±2.47
4196.01±2106.74 4335.67±2359.66 4268.09±2284.41 0.512 3.95±1.06
3.92±0.98
3.94±1.02
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Notes: Gender of household head: 1, men; 2, women. Net family size excludes members residing outside a household for more than eight months.
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0.000
0.942
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Table 4. Measures of attitude, expected results, behaviour control and social norms toward water conservation practice. Gender Indicators
3.60±1.04
3.90±1.30
0.000
AC2
Concern about environmental issues
4.54±1.45
4.07±0.95
4.30±1.25
0.000
AC3
Human and environment
4.09±0.95
4.08±0.94
4.09±0.95
0.964
AC4
Value of water resource
4.10±1.26
4.04±1.22
4.07±1.24
0.522
AC5
Water conservation and environment
4.04±1.41
3.48±1.17
3.75±1.33
0.000
AC6
Water conservation and human
3.78±1.51
3.23±1.29
3.49±1.43
0.000
Water conservation and supply
ER2
Water conservation and shortage
ER3
Water conservation and bills
ER4
Water conservation and environment
0.823
3.58±1.41
3.51±1.46
3.54±1.44
0.560
4.05±1.27
3.67±1.07
3.85±1.19
0.000
3.83±0.94
4.33±1.25
4.08±1.13
0.000
1.71±1.46
1.77±1.56
1.74±1.51
0.625
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ER1
0.835
BC1
Perceptions of daily routine change
2.41±1.03
3.37±1.11
2.90±1.18
0.000
BC2
Perceptions of time and physical effort spent
2.27±0.97
3.28±1.20
2.79±1.19
0.000
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0.962
SN1
Perception of public behaviour
2.96±1.44
3.45±1.51
3.21±1.49
0.000
SN2
Perception of institution behaviour
1.33±1.50
1.44±1.48
1.38±1.49
0.352
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Cronbach's α
Significance
4.23±1.44
Cronbach's α Social norms (SN)
Mean
Attitude towards environmental protection
Cronbach's α Individual behaviour control (BC)
Female (n = 305)
AC1
Cronbach's α
Expected results (ER)
Male (n=286 )
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Attitude towards conservation (AC)
Item
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Factors
0.948
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Table 5. Measures of water conservation practices among genders. Gender Patterns
Item
Measurement items
Mean Male (n=286 )
Female (n = 305)
Signific ance
WCP1
Turning off the faucet while brushing teeth or lathering your face and hands
3.86±1.36
4.34±0.95
4.11±1.19
0.000
Showering
WCP2
Avoiding running water in the shower while shampooing hair and soaping body
3.75±1.32
4.08±1.23
3.92±1.28
0.002
WCP3
Laundering full loads whenever possible
4.22±1.13
4.23±1.15
4.22±1.14
0.956
WCP4
Hand washing several items at the same time and using the rinsing water from one group of items as the wash water for the next
4.43±0.91
4.39±0.86
4.41±0.88
0.648
WCP5
Avoiding the use of running water when washing fruits and vegetables; washing them in a basin
3.18±1.28
4.00±1.59
3.60±1.49
0.000
WCP6
Washing all the dishes together in a basin
3.88±1.40
3.93±1.34
3.91±1.37
0.635
WCP7
Avoiding unnecessary rinsing of dishes, wiping dishes with duster cloth or using a scraper to minimise rinsing
3.25±1.55
3.90±1.37
3.58±1.49
0.000
WCP8
Cleaning yards with a broom or mopping instead of using a hose
3.74±1.44
4.14±1.22
3.95±1.35
0.000
WCP9
Using gray water from washing machines to clean yards or to flush toilets
4.03±1.00
4.36±1.30
4.20±1.16
0.019
WCP10
Watering vegetable garden only in the evening or morning
4.52±0.93
4.63±0.76
4.58±0.84
0.130
WCP11
Watering vegetable garden less frequently
3.52±1.32
3.51±1.34
3.52±1.33
0.955
House and yard cleaning
Vegetable gardening
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Kitchen
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Laundry
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Personal hygiene
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Cronbach's α
0.802
SC
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Figure.1 Location of the study region
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Note: (a) and (b) represent location of Wei River basin and sample sites; A, B and C represent sample site of Weinan, Yanglin-Wugong and Baoji respectively.
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Figure.2 Water consumption for household use by gender (Male, N=286; Female, N=305)
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Note. x2/df=2.242, GFI=0.947, RMSEA=0.042, NFI=0.931, CFI=0.941, TLI=0.946; Abbreviations, AC, attitude towards conservation; ER, expected results; BC, individual behaviour control; SN, social norms; WCPs, water conservation practices.
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Figure. 3 Path analysis of factors that affect residents water saving behaviour of male (all parameter are standardized estimates; N=286)
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Note. x2/df=2.259, GFI=0.941, RMSEA=0.046, NFI=0.937, CFI=0.926, TLI=0.954; Abbreviations, AC, attitude towards conservation; ER, expected results; BC, individual behaviour control; SN, social norms; WCPs, water conservation practices.
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Figure. 4 Path analysis of factors that affect residents water saving behaviour of female (all parameter are standardized estimates; N=305)
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Highlights (1) Water conservation practice among genders and its effect factors are studied.
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(2) Residents have high consciousness towards water conservation, whereas actual practice is less.
(3) Female users consume more water and adopt more conservation practices than do male users.
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(4) Gender disparity of water conservation practice and its driving factors lead to ineffective policy.
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(5) Bills transparency and information communication are beneficial to effective policy.
S0959-6526(16)31510-4
DOI:
10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.09.169
Reference:
JCLP 8129
To appear in:
Journal of Cleaner Production
Received Date: 20 April 2016 Revised Date:
19 September 2016
Accepted Date: 21 September 2016
Please cite this article as: Tong Y, Fan L, Niu H, Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving improved water supply: A gender-based analysis, Journal of Cleaner Production (2016), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2016.09.169. This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.
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Total wordcount: 6023
Water conservation awareness and practices in households receiving
3
improved water supply: a gender-based analysis
4
Yan Tong Liangxin Fan* Haipeng Niu
5
School of Surveying and Land Information Engineering, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, Henan
6
454003, China
7
Abstract: Adoption of water conservation practices (WCPs) is essential to save water. However, the
8
factors that affect changes in behaviour related to water consumption remain unclear, particularly those
9
related to gender differences and women’s views towards WCPs. These factors often result in
10
ineffective public policies. In this study, we analysed the effects of consciousness, perceptions and
11
individual behaviour control towards WCPs, as well as the influence of gender (i.e. male and female)
12
on residents’ WCPs via a detailed survey of 622 residents (female: 318, male: 304) in rural northern
13
China. Data were analyzed using a one-way ANOVA and structural equation model. The respondents
14
had a high degree of awareness of WCPs but reported low participation in WCPs, particularly among
15
male users. Female users consumed twice as much water and adopted more WCPs than male users.
16
Saving water bill was the main incentive for female users to practise WCPs, whereas that for male
17
users was to alleviate water supply shortage. Daily routine changes and additional time and physical
18
efforts were the main barriers for WCPs, particularly for male users. In addition, WCPs of male users
19
were highly affected by individual behaviour control and attitude towards conservation, whereas for
20
female users, WCPs were highly affected by expected results and social norms. The significant gender
21
disparities in the results emphasise the need to ensure information transparency and communication
22
across gender, users, and authorities in public policies and community programs to fix gender gaps and
23
to enhance adoption of WCPs by the public.
24
Keywords: domestic water consumption; water-use behaviour; gender disparity; survey; rural China
25
*Corresponding author: [email protected] (Liangxin Fan)
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1. Introduction
27
Water for domestic use is vital to household daily routines, hygiene and therefore public health.
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1
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT However, in rural areas of less developed countries, water delivery is consistently weak because high
29
water quality is required and large investments typically necessary for equipments. In such areas,
30
almost 748 million people lack access to sufficient safe drinking water, and 2.4 billion people continue
31
to lack access to hygienic sanitation facilities (WHO/UNICEF, 2015). Governments, The World Health
32
Organization (WHO) and various other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have sought to
33
improve water delivery systems to ensure safe water supply in underdeveloped countries. As a result of
34
their efforts, more than 2.6 billion people gained safe access to drinking water between 1995 to 2015.
35
Currently, 90% of the world’s population has access to safe drinking water (WHO/UNICEF, 2015). In
36
China, approximately USD 16.5 billion was invested in water delivery systems from 2006 to 2010, and
37
more than 520,000 centralised water supply systems were built for 58% of the total rural population by
38
the end of 2010 (Li et al., 2015).
39
Unsurprisingly, water consumption for domestic use almost doubled in households that had newly
40
gained access to improved water supply (Florke et al., 2013). In rural China, residents increased water
41
use from 46.5 L/c/d (liters per capita per day) to 71.3 L/c/d after tap water supply became available
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(Fan et al., 2014a). In rural Malawi, residents consumed 9.7 L/c/d before and 15.3 L/c/d after
43
community taps were installed (Lindskog and Lundqvist, 1989). The designed water delivery capacity
44
often does not meet increasing demands for water, which poses a barrier to safe water supply in rural
45
areas even after receiving improved water supply (Zhou and Zhou, 2009). Therefore, restrictive
46
policies such as intermittent water supply and increased water prices are widely implemented at local
47
levels. However, such policies have been criticised in many studies for their inequitable effects,
48
sanitation risks and ability to cause water panic (Kumpel and Nelson, 2013).
49
Since increase in water delivery capacity is affected heavily by restrictions of economic, environmental
50
and water resource endowment, more and more governments, NGOs and scientists have cooperatively
51
sought solutions to reduce residents’ demands (UNDP, 2012). Several measures have been proposed to
52
achieve significant water savings. The most effective measures include use of water-efficient
53
appliances (low-flow showerhead and taps, water-efficient washing machines and dishwashers) and
54
encouraging residents to adapt pro-environmental behaviour through pricing, education and awareness,
55
restriction of water supply and rebate schemes (Shove et al., 2010). In the Australian Capital Territory,
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domestic water consumption was reduced by an average of 19% from 2001 to 2004 through education
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58
is predicted to drop by 13.3% in 2030 via water use behaviour change (Shove et al., 2010). However,
59
achieving water saving through behaviour change is difficult. Education and public awareness
60
campaigns reduced water consumption by 57% in Melbourne (Bryx and Bromberg, 2009). By contrast,
61
such strategies produced less than 20% reduction in California (Renwick and Green 2000) and Saudi
62
Arabia (Abdulrazzak and Khan, 1990). Residents may be reluctant to change their behaviour because
63
of personal characteristics, consciousness, habits and even gender disparity (Fan et al., 2014b).
64
In rural developing countries, women and girls are recognised as primary stakeholders in household
65
daily activities, including fetching water, cleaning, cooking, washing and sanitation, as opposed to men
66
(Garcetti and Kevany, 2013). However, females are not usually considered as equals to males in
67
participating in water governance (Das, 2014) because of gender discrimination, lack of knowledge,
68
tradition and culture limitations (Caruso et al., 2015). As a result, the views and feelings of females, as
69
well as gender disparity towards use and conservation behaviours are consistently ignored in public
70
policies (Meza, 2013). Such neglect results in inefficient water resource management (Akli and Bedrani,
71
2014). Therefore, understanding female views, consciousness and perceptions towards water use
72
behaviours and gender disparity is essential to formulate effective public policies (Schneiderman and
73
Reddock, 2004). However, studies on these topics are few and far between.
74
This study aims (1) to quantify and categorise the difference in knowledge, perceptions and behaviour
75
with regard to domestic water consumption between males and females in rural areas of the Wei River
76
basin, (2) to identify key gender disparity-related factors that affect residents’ water use behaviour, and
77
(3) to explore and recommend public policies to guide residents to adopt water saving practices and use
78
water wisely.
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2. Materials and Methods
80
2.1. Study area
81
The study was conducted in the Shannxi Plain (104°00’–110°10’E, 33°50’–37°18’N) in the middle and
82
lower Wei River basin, North China (Fig. 1). The total area of the study region is approximately 34000
83
km2. The climate is temperate and semi-humid with annual temperatures of 7.8–13.5 °C. Annual
84
rainfall is 450–700 mm, and annual evaporation is 1000–2000 mm (Fan et al., 2014a). It is the most
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86
well-developed irrigation systems. The plain comprises 75% of irrigated land, 56% of cultivated land,
87
64% of the total population and more than 65% of the GDP of the entire basin (Fan et al., 2014b).
88
The region has approximately 30 million people, more than half of whom live in rural villages scattered
89
across the plain (Huang et al., 2014). Ensuring safe water supply for daily use by rural residents is the
90
main issue faced by the local government. Heavily polluted surface water makes the situation worse—
91
more than 94% of the water supply for domestic use is sourced from underground water (Fan et al.,
92
2014a). In the last decade, the Mother Cistern Project (2001–2011) and the Chinese Safe Drinking
93
Water Project (2005–2015) have been implemented in the Shannxi Plain to ensure safe water supply.
94
The “Mother’s Cistern Project” was launched by the China Women’s Development Foundation, one of
95
the largest NGOs in China, which operates with the motto “Donate Love to Poor Mothers in Western
96
China” (China Daily, 2002). “The Chinese Safe Drinking Water Project” is the largest project in rural
97
drinking water supply run by the Chinese government and aims to “completely solving rural drinking
98
water safety issues”. Over 15 million rural residents in the Shannxi Plain have gained access to
99
improved water supply from the two projects (Shannxi Daily, 2015). Currently, more than 80% of rural
100
residents in the Shannxi Plain receive tap water from independent water supply systems run by villages
101
and towns. Water supply capacities have drastically improved. However, water consumption per capita
102
for domestic use has also increased because of convenience of fetching water and pursuit of good living
103
conditions. The designed water delivery system has thus been unable to match the increased demand
104
for water consumption. As a result, 30% of villages that receive tap water supply have had to adopt
105
intermittent modes of water supply to restrict water consumption.
106
2.2. Survey design and data collection
107
We conducted a questionnaire survey through face-to-face interviews from April to August 2014. We
108
randomly chose 622 residents (female: 318, male: 304) who were potentially willing to participate in
109
the survey. These residents came from 622 households that received tap water supply in the districts of
110
Baoji (female: 95; male: 94), Yanglin-Wugong (female: 122; male: 113) and Weinan (female: 101;
111
male: 97) in the Guanzhong-Tianshui economic zone. These three districts are located in the Shannxi
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Plain and have similar climate and socio-economic characteristics. They are all covered by the Chinese
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Safe Drinking Water Project (2005–2015) and the Mother Cisterns Project (2001–2011). The
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT proportions of residents in rural areas in the three districts who received tap water supply are as follows:
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Baoji: 72%, Yanglin-Wugong: 83% and Weinan: 78%. Written informed consent for data collection
116
was obtained before conducting the face-to face interviews. Participation was entirely voluntary, and
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the participants could freely refuse to answer questions without providing justification. Each participant
118
received household items (towels, soap and shampoo) worth USD 1.6 as economic compensation. We
119
had 13 refusals, 18 incomplete questionnaires and 591 complete questionnaires (female: 305, male: 286)
120
(Table 1).
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The questionnaire was used to get information on the characteristics of the water users (age,
122
educational level, household income and net family size) and 25 items on attitude towards conservation
123
(AC; six items), expected results (saving water bills, alleviating water shortage and protecting the
124
environment) (ER; four items), individual behaviour control (perceived ease or difficulty of performing
125
water conservation) (BC; two items), social norms (public perception and attitudes of authorities
126
toward water conservation) (SN; two items) and water conservation practices (WCPs; eleven items)
127
(Table 2). We used a five-point Likert scale (Likert, 1932) (1=very unlikely, 2= unlikely, 3= neither
128
unlikely nor likely, 4= likely, and 5=very likely) to quantify the questionnaire responses. Higher scores
129
indicated greater likelihood.
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2.3 Data analysis
131
Data from the 591 completed questionnaires were coded and analysed using SPSS 15.0 and Amos 7.0.
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We assessed internal consistency of the questionnaire items using Cronbach’s α test. The categories AC,
133
ER, BC, SN and WCPs had α values of 0.823, 0.835, 0.962, 0.948 and 0.802 respectively. A value
134
higher than 0.7 indicated good internal consistency (Chung et al., 1998). We compared the
135
characteristics, attitudes, perceptions, perceived social norms and individual behaviour control as well
136
as water use practices between male and female farmers. We calculated the means ± standard
137
deviations, applied the Kolmogorov–Smirnov (KS) test to assess normality of the data distribution and
138
used one-way ANOVA followed by post-hoc LSD tests for comparisons. Statistical significance was
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set at p<0.05. We utilized a structural equation model (SEM) in Amos 7.0 to identify relationships
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among the characteristics, attitude, perceptions, social norms and individual behaviour control towards
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WCPs in the male and female respondents.
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3. Results
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The respondents (male: 286, female: 305) resided at the middle stream of the Wei River basin and all
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were covered by the Chinese Safe Drinking Water Project (2005–2015) with 24-hour piped water
146
supply. The majority of household leaders were male (1.43±0.49). The annual household income of the
147
respondents was USD 4268.09 (±2284.41) and net family size was 3.94 (±1.02). Female users were
148
younger (45.62±11.04 years) than male users (49.12±12.98 years) and had received less education
149
(5.57±2.23 years) compared with male users (7.44±2.56 years) (Table 3).
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3.2 Water consumption and conservation practices of the respondents
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A total of 70.1 L/c/d (liters per capita per day) (indoor: 38.8 L, outdoor: 32.7 L) water were consumed
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by each household. Female users consumed twice as much water (93.0 L/c/d) as male users (46.7
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L/c/d), particularly for vegetable and garden watering (21.94±7.91), laundry (16.14±5.49 L/c/d) and
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kitchen use (16.20±5.07). In other water use items (house and yard cleaning, livestock, drinking and
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personal hygiene, and showering), female respondents also consumed more water than male responders
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(Fig. 2).
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A total of 11 conservation practices (WCPs) were adopted by the respondents during water use. These
158
practices include personal hygiene (1 practice), showering (1 practice), laundry (2 practices), kitchen (3
159
practices), house and yard cleaning (2 practices), and vegetable and gardening (2 practices). Female
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users reported using more WCPs than male users, especially in avoiding unnecessary water running
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(brushing teeth, washing face and hands-WCP1, showering-WCP2, and washing fruits and
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vegetables-WCP5), saving water (using duster cloth or a scraper while wiping dishes-WCP7 and using
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a broom or mopping while cleaning the yard-WCP8) and gray water reuse (WCP9) (Table 5).
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3.3 Attitude, expected results, individual behaviour control and social norms among genders
165
The respondents had good awareness of environmental protection and relatively lower awareness of
166
water conservation (Table 4). They were highly concerned with environmental issues that they faced
167
and possessed good knowledge of environment protection and utilization. However, they lacked an
168
understanding of relationships between water conservation and environment, as well as human
169
performance. Male users had more knowledge and good attitude towards conservation than female
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users did, particularly with regard to environmental issues and protection (AC1 and AC2), the
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relationship between water conservation and environment, and human performance (AC5 and AC6).
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alleviate water shortages (ER2). Female users practised water conservation mainly to save water costs
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(ER3), whereas male users practised water conservation mainly to alleviate water supply shortage
175
(ER2). The two genders did not believe that WCPs would change the environment significantly (ER4).
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The main barriers to practicing water conservation were daily routine changes (BC1) and the need for
177
additional time and efforts (BC2), particularly for male users. Most respondents, especially males,
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believed that the public and water institutions are not actively implementing water saving campaigns.
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3.4 Factors that affect WCPs
180
Factors that affected WCPs varied between females and males. The structural equation model (SEM) of
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WCP indicated that the WCPs of male users were highly affected by BC (standardised path coefficient,
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SPC=0.27) and AC (SPC=0.21). SN (SPC=0.13) and ER of male users moderately and weakly affected
183
their WCPs respectively (Fig. 3). The WCPs of female users were highly affected by ER (SPC=0.30)
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and SN (SPC=0.24), moderately affected by awareness of BC (SPC=0.14) and weakly affected by AC
185
(Fig. 4).
186
4. Discussion
187
Women consumed twice more water than men did in rural China. Water use by women was associated
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mainly with household care activities. This is consistent with previous reports that women are the main
189
users of water and assume the primary role in household care in many less developed countries such as
190
India (Upadhyay, 2005), Algeria (Akli and Bedrani, 2014), Mali (Shonsey and Gierke, 2013) and Brazil
191
(Moraes and Rocha, 2013). Therefore, women’s perspectives on water resource management and
192
conservation need to be highly emphasised.
193
Significant differences between women and men exist with respect to fetching water (Upadhyay, 2005),
194
using water (Caruso et al., 2015) and decision making and policy (Kholif and Elfarouk, 2014). Our
195
study found that significant gaps exist between water conservation consciousness and behaviours of
196
males and females. Women adopted more WCPs than men did; this finding is supported by
197
Hablemitoglu and Ozmete (2010), who found that Turkish women practised 31 water-saving
198
behaviours. Women adopted more WCPs than men in China mainly because of past experiences and
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memories of hard times of water shortage and inconvenience of collecting water before water supply
200
improved. This finding is similar to a previous report of past experiences and memories affecting water
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT use behaviours (Urquijo and De Stefano, 2016) and making consumers use water carefully to some
202
extent even after receiving tap water supply.
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Chan and Vilas (2007) emphasised that women are not only adopters of WCPs but are also responsible
204
for educating children and supervising family members in performing these practices. The women in
205
our study were less educated than men. Lack of sufficient education and even illiteracy of women in
206
less developed countries are the main barriers to their ability to educate and supervise children and
207
family members in water conservation (Fan et al., 2013). Data from UNESCO indicates that 771
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million adults in developing countries lack minimal literacy. An estimated 52.7% of the world’s
209
illiterate population lives in India, China and Bangladesh (UNESCO, 2006). Of this figure, almost 500
210
million are women (UN, 2015). Therefore, educating women is a critical step in the adoption of WCPs
211
by the entire family and society.
212
Gender refers not only to the literal meaning of women or men but also to their status, responsibilities,
213
rights and participation in all areas and at all levels of social affairs, which include resource
214
management, public authority and decision making. Therefore, gender disparities among males and
215
females must be addressed. However, in reality, public water conservation policies are usually gender
216
neutral, which indicates that gender disparities are overlooked (Singh, 2008). Our study found that the
217
factors that affect WCPs vary significantly across genders. Female users adopt conservation practices
218
mainly because of the expected positive results of conservation (saving water bills) and social norms
219
(perception of public and authority towards water conservation practices). By contrast, adoption of
220
conservation practices by men depends mainly on their attitude, individual behaviour control
221
(perceptions of their daily routine change, time and physical effort spent practising water conservation)
222
and social norms. Transparency of information regarding water consumption among users is important
223
for water conservation (Liu et al., 2016); our study found that this factor is more important to female
224
users than to male users. Women adopt WCPs mainly to save water costs. A water bill is the major
225
indicator to users of the amount of water they use (Piccinin, 2004). However, some studies have
226
reported that use of water bills to encourage WCPs among users yielded disappointing results in less
227
developed countries (Fan et al., 2014b). The variety of water sources, poor facilities and management
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and inefficient fixed bills and bundles with other bills are the main barriers to low price transparency
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(Fan et al., 2013). Along with highly improved water supply and facilities through the efforts of
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bill and billing reform are needed to encourage water saving through improved information
232
transparency.
233
Social norms refer to individual behaviour that is considered acceptable (social values, customs and
234
traditions) in a group or society (Lapinski and Rimal, 2005). These norms are composed of individual
235
knowledge of what others do and what they think an individual should do (Cialdini, 2003). Our study
236
found that such social norms affect the conservation behaviours of both male and female users. Syme
237
and Jorgensen (1999) found that public perceptions of institutional and peer actions are a critical
238
variable for behavioural change interventions. Jorgensen et al. (2009) confirmed that if the public
239
perceives that water authorities and the rest of the public are untrustworthy, they will not follow their
240
instructions to conserve water, thereby indicating the close links between trust and social norms.
241
Trustworthy authorities and the public will promote the individual’s willingness to change his/her
242
behaviour to adopt WCPs by improving the capacity of his/her behaviour control, which affects
243
behaviour change in both males and females. Therefore, improving users’ trust in the public and the
244
authorities are the key factors for instilling behavioural changes. Guivant (2003) found that users’ trust
245
depends on the information they received and, to a certain extent, on their belief in information
246
providers. However, such information is often lacking, vague and even self-contradictory because of
247
poor management. This scenario also occurs in water management, particularly in newly improved
248
water supply systems, in which the regime consistently hinders the need for effective management.
249
Therefore, information transparency and communication among users, institutes and authorities is
250
beneficial to build trust networks to improve social norms and capacity of individual behavior control
251
of water conservation.
252
5. Conclusion
253
Continuous growth of gaps between delivery capacities and increasing water demand is a major threat
254
to sustainable safe water supply and rural development. Inadequate WCPs of residents could be
255
attributed to the perceived negative outcome of WCPs (negative perceptions of lowering water bills,
256
alleviating water shortage and protecting the environment through WCPs), low individual behaviour
257
control (rejection of daily routine change and negative perceptions of time and physical effort spent)
258
and lack of social support (negative perceptions of the public and authorities toward water conservation
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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT practices), particularly lack of consideration of gender disparity and women’s views on WCPs. Female
260
users adopt WCPs mainly to save water costs, whereas male users practise WCPs mainly to alleviate
261
water supply shortage. Reluctance to change daily routines and requirements of additional time and
262
efforts are the main barriers to adoption of WCPs by male users, whereas lack of social support is the
263
main barrier to adoption of WCPs by female users. The following community interventions should be
264
considered to promote the WCPs of residents: (1) emphasising gender disparities and women’s
265
perspectives while formulating public policy to promote water conservation and sustainable water
266
resource management; (2) ensuring a clear water bill and billing reform to promote efficient water
267
conservation by female users, and launching propaganda campaigns targeting men to encourage the
268
WCPs of male users; and (3) improving information transparency and communication across genders,
269
users, institutes and authorities to enhance social support for water conservation.
270
Acknowledgement
271
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41671514,
272
41371524 and 41301617). The authors thank two anonymous reviewers and the editor for their
273
valuable comments.
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13
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Table 1. Demographic characteristics of the participants. District
Sampled households
Net family size
Annual household income (USD)
Water supply patterns
Water price (USD/m3)
Location
A
Weinan
189
4.0
4250
24-h piped water supply
0.35
34°45'N–34°49'N, 109°09'E– 09°15'E
B
YanglinWugong
229
3.9
4430
24-h piped water supply
0.27
34°17'N–34°20'N, 107°57'E–108°04'E
C
Baoji
173
4.2
4060
24-h piped water supply
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Sampled region
0.32
34°21'N–34°24'N, 107°24'E–107°29'E
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Note: Net household size is excluding members who reside outside the household for more than 8 months.
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT
Table 2. Measures and items of attitude, expected results, behaviour control, social norms and conservation practice towards water consumption.
Expected results (ER)
Individual behaviour control (BC)
Measurement items
AC1
Attitude towards environmental protection
The natural environment is very important and fragile.
AC2
Concern about environmental issues
In recent years, more frequent and serious natural disasters have been occurring.
AC3
Human and environment
Humans have the right to change nature to meet our daily needs.
AC4
Value of water resource
Water is a very important natural resource.
AC5
Water conservation and environment
Reducing water consumption is a way to protect the environment.
AC6
Water conservation and human
Saving water reflects civilisation and good behaviour.
ER1
Water conservation and supply
Water saving practices can solve the inadequate water supply.
ER2
Water conservation and shortage
Adopting conservation practices is important to solve the current water shortage.
ER3
Water conservation and bills
Water conservation will reduce water bills significantly.
ER4
Water conservation and environment
Water conservation will change the environment significantly.
BC1
Perceptions of daily routine change
Saving water will not change my daily lifestyle.
BC2
Perceptions of time and physical effort spent.
Saving water will not incur additional time and physical effort.
SN1
Perception of public behaviour
My neighbours, friends and family members practise water saving.
SN2
Perception of institution behaviour
Social norms (SN) WCP1
Personal hygiene
WCP2
Showering
WCP7 WCP8 WCP9 WCP10 WCP11
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Laundering full loads whenever possible
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Laundry
WCP5 WCP6
Turning off the faucet while brushing teeth or lathering your face and hands
Kitchen
AC C
Water conservation practices (WCPs)
The entire society follows water saving campaigns and practises water saving.
Avoiding running water in the shower while shampooing hair and soaping body
WCP3 WCP4
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Indicators
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Attitude towards conservation (AC)
Item
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Factors
House and yard cleaning
Vegetable gardening
Hand washing several items at the same time and using the rinsing water from one group of items as the wash water for the next Avoiding the use of running water when washing fruits and vegetables; washing them in a basin Washing all the dishes together in a basin Avoiding unnecessary rinsing of dishes, wiping dishes with duster cloth or using a scraper to minimise rinsing Cleaning yards with a broom or mopping instead of using a hose Using gray water from washing machines to clean yards or to flush toilets Watering vegetable garden only in the evening or morning Watering vegetable garden less frequently
ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Table 3. Social-economic characteristics of the respondents (mean±SD). Gender of respondents Socio-economic characteristic
Mean
Sig.
Male (M, n=286) Female (F, n=305) 1.42±0.49
1.44±0.50
1.43±0.49
0.690
Age (years)
49.12±12.98
45.62±11.04
47.31±12.20
0.000
Education (years)
7.44±2.56
5.57±2.23
Annual household income (USD) Net family size
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Gender of household leader
6.47±2.47
4196.01±2106.74 4335.67±2359.66 4268.09±2284.41 0.512 3.95±1.06
3.92±0.98
3.94±1.02
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Notes: Gender of household head: 1, men; 2, women. Net family size excludes members residing outside a household for more than eight months.
AC C
0.000
0.942
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Table 4. Measures of attitude, expected results, behaviour control and social norms toward water conservation practice. Gender Indicators
3.60±1.04
3.90±1.30
0.000
AC2
Concern about environmental issues
4.54±1.45
4.07±0.95
4.30±1.25
0.000
AC3
Human and environment
4.09±0.95
4.08±0.94
4.09±0.95
0.964
AC4
Value of water resource
4.10±1.26
4.04±1.22
4.07±1.24
0.522
AC5
Water conservation and environment
4.04±1.41
3.48±1.17
3.75±1.33
0.000
AC6
Water conservation and human
3.78±1.51
3.23±1.29
3.49±1.43
0.000
Water conservation and supply
ER2
Water conservation and shortage
ER3
Water conservation and bills
ER4
Water conservation and environment
0.823
3.58±1.41
3.51±1.46
3.54±1.44
0.560
4.05±1.27
3.67±1.07
3.85±1.19
0.000
3.83±0.94
4.33±1.25
4.08±1.13
0.000
1.71±1.46
1.77±1.56
1.74±1.51
0.625
M AN U
ER1
0.835
BC1
Perceptions of daily routine change
2.41±1.03
3.37±1.11
2.90±1.18
0.000
BC2
Perceptions of time and physical effort spent
2.27±0.97
3.28±1.20
2.79±1.19
0.000
TE D
0.962
SN1
Perception of public behaviour
2.96±1.44
3.45±1.51
3.21±1.49
0.000
SN2
Perception of institution behaviour
1.33±1.50
1.44±1.48
1.38±1.49
0.352
AC C
EP
Cronbach's α
Significance
4.23±1.44
Cronbach's α Social norms (SN)
Mean
Attitude towards environmental protection
Cronbach's α Individual behaviour control (BC)
Female (n = 305)
AC1
Cronbach's α
Expected results (ER)
Male (n=286 )
RI PT
Attitude towards conservation (AC)
Item
SC
Factors
0.948
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Table 5. Measures of water conservation practices among genders. Gender Patterns
Item
Measurement items
Mean Male (n=286 )
Female (n = 305)
Signific ance
WCP1
Turning off the faucet while brushing teeth or lathering your face and hands
3.86±1.36
4.34±0.95
4.11±1.19
0.000
Showering
WCP2
Avoiding running water in the shower while shampooing hair and soaping body
3.75±1.32
4.08±1.23
3.92±1.28
0.002
WCP3
Laundering full loads whenever possible
4.22±1.13
4.23±1.15
4.22±1.14
0.956
WCP4
Hand washing several items at the same time and using the rinsing water from one group of items as the wash water for the next
4.43±0.91
4.39±0.86
4.41±0.88
0.648
WCP5
Avoiding the use of running water when washing fruits and vegetables; washing them in a basin
3.18±1.28
4.00±1.59
3.60±1.49
0.000
WCP6
Washing all the dishes together in a basin
3.88±1.40
3.93±1.34
3.91±1.37
0.635
WCP7
Avoiding unnecessary rinsing of dishes, wiping dishes with duster cloth or using a scraper to minimise rinsing
3.25±1.55
3.90±1.37
3.58±1.49
0.000
WCP8
Cleaning yards with a broom or mopping instead of using a hose
3.74±1.44
4.14±1.22
3.95±1.35
0.000
WCP9
Using gray water from washing machines to clean yards or to flush toilets
4.03±1.00
4.36±1.30
4.20±1.16
0.019
WCP10
Watering vegetable garden only in the evening or morning
4.52±0.93
4.63±0.76
4.58±0.84
0.130
WCP11
Watering vegetable garden less frequently
3.52±1.32
3.51±1.34
3.52±1.33
0.955
House and yard cleaning
Vegetable gardening
SC
Kitchen
M AN U
Laundry
RI PT
Personal hygiene
AC C
EP
TE D
Cronbach's α
0.802
SC
RI PT
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AC C
EP
TE D
Figure.1 Location of the study region
M AN U
Note: (a) and (b) represent location of Wei River basin and sample sites; A, B and C represent sample site of Weinan, Yanglin-Wugong and Baoji respectively.
TE D
M AN U
SC
RI PT
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AC C
EP
Figure.2 Water consumption for household use by gender (Male, N=286; Female, N=305)
M AN U
SC
RI PT
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TE D
Note. x2/df=2.242, GFI=0.947, RMSEA=0.042, NFI=0.931, CFI=0.941, TLI=0.946; Abbreviations, AC, attitude towards conservation; ER, expected results; BC, individual behaviour control; SN, social norms; WCPs, water conservation practices.
AC C
EP
Figure. 3 Path analysis of factors that affect residents water saving behaviour of male (all parameter are standardized estimates; N=286)
TE D
M AN U
SC
RI PT
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Note. x2/df=2.259, GFI=0.941, RMSEA=0.046, NFI=0.937, CFI=0.926, TLI=0.954; Abbreviations, AC, attitude towards conservation; ER, expected results; BC, individual behaviour control; SN, social norms; WCPs, water conservation practices.
AC C
EP
Figure. 4 Path analysis of factors that affect residents water saving behaviour of female (all parameter are standardized estimates; N=305)
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Highlights (1) Water conservation practice among genders and its effect factors are studied.
RI PT
(2) Residents have high consciousness towards water conservation, whereas actual practice is less.
(3) Female users consume more water and adopt more conservation practices than do male users.
SC
(4) Gender disparity of water conservation practice and its driving factors lead to ineffective policy.
AC C
EP
TE D
M AN U
(5) Bills transparency and information communication are beneficial to effective policy.