Plastic reduction practices and associated psychosocial factors among male university students in Kabul, Afghanistan

Plastic pollution represents a growing global environmental and public health concern, driven largely by unsustainable consumption patterns of single-use plastics. This study aimed to examine attitudes, environmental context, social influences, and behavior intention toward plastic reduction among male undergraduate students at Kabul University, Afghanistan. A cross-sectional design was conducted between November 2025 and January 2026 using a structured, self-administered questionnaire informed by the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). A total of 380 students completed the survey. Participants reported highly favorable attitudes toward plastic reduction (4.34 ± 0.61), moderate environmental context (1.95 ± 0.61), favorable social influence scores (3.41 ± 0.55) and relatively high levels of behavior intention (3.99 ± 0.61). Pearson correlation analysis showed that attitudes (r = 0.403, p < 0.001), environmental context (r = 0.281, p < 0.001), and social influence (r = 0.306, p < 0.001) were positively associated with behavior intention to plastic reduction. In multiple linear regression analysis, attitudes (β = 0.365, p < 0.001), environmental context (β = 0.178, p < 0.001), social influence (β = 0.195, p < 0.013) remained significantly associated with behavior intention towards plastic reduction, whereas age, marital status, faculty, residential status, monthly income, and weekly plastic usage were not significantly associated with the outcome. These findings indicate that favorable attitudes, supportive environmental contexts, and stronger social influence were associated with greater behavior intention toward plastic reduction among male university students. The study contributes to the limited evidence on plastic reduction-related perceptions and practices in Afghanistan and may help informed university-based students’ environmental education, awareness campaigns, and waste-management initiatives.