Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices

Tekin, Ömer Faruk; Arıkan, İnci; Bölükbaş, Muhammet Ali

doi:10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

Archives of Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology, Vol. 77 No. 1, 2026.

Original scientific paper

https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices

Ömer Faruk Tekin ; Kütahya Health Sciences University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Kütahya, Turkey
İnci Arıkan orcid.org/0000-0001-5060-7722 ; Kütahya Health Sciences University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Kütahya, Turkey
Muhammet Ali Bölükbaş orcid.org/0009-0008-1119-4177 ; Kütahya Health Sciences University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health, Kütahya, Turkey

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APA 6th Edition

Tekin, Ö.F., Arıkan, İ. & Bölükbaş, M.A. (2026). Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices. Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju, 77 (1), 57-64. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

MLA 8th Edition

Tekin, Ömer Faruk, et al. "Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices." Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju, vol. 77, no. 1, 2026, pp. 57-64. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030. Accessed 7 May 2026.

Chicago 17th Edition

Tekin, Ömer Faruk, İnci Arıkan and Muhammet Ali Bölükbaş. "Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices." Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju 77, no. 1 (2026): 57-64. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

Harvard

Tekin, Ö.F., Arıkan, İ., and Bölükbaş, M.A. (2026). 'Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices', Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju, 77(1), pp. 57-64. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

Vancouver

Tekin ÖF, Arıkan İ, Bölükbaş MA. Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices. Arh Hig Rada Toksikol. [Internet]. 2026 [cited 2026 May 07];77(1):57-64. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

IEEE

Ö.F. Tekin, İ. Arıkan and M.A. Bölükbaş, "Public awareness of microplastic pollution among residents of a western Turkish province and how it is reflected in demographics and behavioural practices", Arhiv za higijenu rada i toksikologiju, vol.77, no. 1, pp. 57-64, 2026. [Online]. https://doi.org/10.2478/aiht-2026-77-4030

Abstract

This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the public awareness of and attitudes toward microplastic pollution in the Kütahya Province of Turkey between September and December 2024 and included 406 users of regional family healthcare centres. Data were collected with a specifically developed questionnaire combining sociodemographic information and self-reported knowledge, attitudes, and behavior related to the microplastics issue and with our Microplastic Pollution Awareness Scale (MPAS), against which we compared the answers to the first questionnaire. MPAS scores were significantly higher among women than men, persons under the age of 40, unmarried participants, university graduates (5.1 times higher than in those with lower education), and residents of developed regions (2.3 times higher than among residents of underdeveloped or developing regions). Overall, participants show pretty good awareness of microplastic pollution. Future prospective studies should cover all ages, but more importantly, develop effective intervention programmes aimed at changing public behaviour.