Attitudes and preferences of the Chinese public towards products made from recycled materials: A text mining approach

Products made from recycled materials, as an environmentally friendly option, have attracted public attention. Understanding public attitudes and preferences towards such products is crucial for their market development. In order to explore the Chinese residents’ attitude and emotional tendency, we analyzed public discussions and topics on products made from recycled materials from Sina Weibo. Meanwhile, LDA and BERT deep learning models were employed to assess the level of public attention, hot topics, and sentiment tendencies in China. Results show a significant upward trend in public interest in products made from recycled materials. Although the fact that most people have a positive attitude towards the environmental concept of products made from recycled materials and support such products, there is not a significant demand for products made from recycled materials, i.e., there is a green attitude-behaviour gap. Results further reveal that factors such as the price of products made from recycled materials, branding, and public skepticism about the sustainability of the products are the main reasons for the gap between environmental awareness and consumer behaviour. By analyzing the public's cognitive structure and psychological characteristics regarding products made from recycled materials through social media data, this paper can help recycling manufacturers understand consumers' needs and expectations, as well as assist policymakers in formulating better circular economy policies.