Water Literacy Evaluation in Urban Society (Case study: Isfahan City)

Abstract

Water literacy is a new concept in the studies of water demand management that calculates the water knowledge, attitude and behavior of people in a society. This research used surveys and questionnaires to account the water literacy of citizens in Isfahan city and examined the roles of different variables, such as education, gender, income and employment by statistical analysis. For this purpose, the sampling society was selected citizens older than 20 years in which questionnaires were collected from 398 people. Results showed that the mean score of water literacy among citizens were 43.5 (out of 100). Here, only 1% of respondents could achieve a score above 66, while 10% were below 33. Water knowledge could receive the lowest score (34.1), while attitude had the highest score (47.6). Although the regression analysis indicated that the three pillars of water literacy were relatively independent, behavior and attitude had the highest correlation with water literacy. Comparative analysis also revealed that having college education, stable job, high income or higher age (>40) could significantly increase the water literacy. This index was higher for men than women as well. These outcomes show that water literacy and its components can be quantified in urban areas. © 2021 Journal of Environmental Studies. All rights reserved.