title: Bottled water: United States consumers and their perceptions of water quality.
abstract: Consumption of bottled water is increasing worldwide. Prior research shows many consumers believe bottled water is convenient and has better taste than tap water, despite reports of a number of water quality incidents with bottled water. The authors explore the demographic and social factors associated with bottled water users in the U.S. and the relationship between bottled water use and perceptions of the quality of local water supply. They find that U.S. consumers are more likely to report bottled water as their primary drinking water source when they perceive that drinking water is not safe. Furthermore, those who give lower ratings to the quality of their ground water are more likely to regularly purchase bottle water for drinking and use bottle water as their primary drinking water source.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, Iowa State University, 103 East Hall, Ames, IA 50011, USA. zhihuahu@iastate.edu
authors.forename: Zhihua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Lois Wright
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Morton
authors.forename: Robert L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Mahler
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001290:Attitude; D001628:Beverages; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019064:Product Packaging; D011639:Public Opinion; D014481:United States; D014881:Water Supply / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult