Investigation of the Views of Sports Sciences Faculty Students on Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices on Digital Waste Management

Abstract

The aim of this research is to investigate the opinions of sports science faculty students regarding their knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding Digital Waste (d-waste) management.

I

n this study, the scanning model, which is one of the descriptive research models, was used. The study group consisted of 530 students, 218 female and 312 male, studying at the Faculty of Sports Sciences of a state university in the fall semester of 2024-2025. A scale was used to indicate the participants' opinions on Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) regarding D-waste management. The obtained data were analyzed using frequency and percentage values ​​of variables measured at the classical level. Results: It was determined that 81.5%, 89.8%, 83.9%, 81.1% and 90.5% of the participants, respectively, generated e-waste from digital products such as Laptops, Mobile Phones, Televisions, Digital Cameras and Headphones.  When their opinions on the disposal of old electronic equipment were asked, it was determined that 64.5% of the participants believed that this equipment should be collected and recycled by the manufacturer. Regarding e-waste practices, 38.9% of the participants stated that the purchase of digital devices was largely influenced by need and convenience, while 34.7% stated that this was due to new and improved features. As a result; it can be argued that knowledge, attitudes and practices towards d-waste positively affect sustainable d-waste management practices, and the desire to collect and recycle d-waste stems mainly from the understanding that such actions reduce the impact of environmental problems and protect human life.