Evaluating municipal policy: an analysis of a refuse packaging program.
City rules work when police give quick tickets and you graph the results.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The city wanted people to bag their trash. Many left loose garbage on the curb.
Lowe et al. (1977) tested a simple plan. Police drove by and ticketed homes that broke the rule.
They ran the test in two city areas. Each area started the crackdown at a different time.
What they found
Violations dropped fast in both areas. The change happened right after enforcement began.
The city kept the gains for months. Fewer tickets were needed over time.
How this fits with other research
Tanoue et al. (1988) got the same quick drop. They used police checks to stop illegal handicapped parking.
Bryant et al. (1984) also cleaned up waste. They used prompts and free bins to boost recycling.
These studies show one rule: clear rules plus quick consequences change city behavior fast.
Why it matters
You can copy this model for any city rule. Pick a small area, start enforcement, then expand. Track tickets and violations each week. Share the graph with city staff so they see the change. This keeps programs alive after you leave.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The effect of a municipal enforcement program to improve residents' packaging of refuse was analyzed in a multiple-baseline design across two areas of a city. The enforcement program involved instruction concerning refuse-packaging regulations, collection only of appropriately packaged refuse, and feedback notices to residents concerning the reasons for noncollection of their inadequately packaged refuse. Both the number of violations and the percentage of residences violating each day were markedly reduced during the enforcement program. Furthermore, sanitation workers considered that the packaging of refuse and the safety and efficiency of refuse collection had improved. This study served as a pilot evaluation of a policy change in the city sanitation department, and was functional in determining the direction of that policy.
Journal of applied behavior analysis, 1977 · doi:10.1901/jaba.1977.10-391