Happy to share Emma Martens' article on the drivers of energy use reduction. Together with our co-authors from Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI, INEGI driving science & innovation and Athens University of Economics and Business, we asked pilot participants in our H2020 project NUDGE, located in Greece, Croatia, Belgium, Portugal and Germany about energy reduction intention. These results replicate earlier work and establishes the use of Prototype Willingness Model, Theory of Planned behaviour and Value Belief Norm Theory as valuable models of understanding curtailment behaviour.
In brief:
➡️ Social influence is important: Willingness, primarily driven by socially reactive behavior (Prototype Willingness Model), was the strongest predictor of intention to reduce heating-related energy consumption, with people’s evaluation of similar others playing a major role.
➡️ Rational and moral factors matter, but less so: While personal moral norms (from the Value Belief Norm Theory) had a weaker impact on intention, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control (from the Theory of Planned Behavior) were stronger predictors, though attitude had a weaker role due to concerns over personal comfort.
➡️ Consistency across countries: There were no significant differences in intention to lower heating between the five pilot countries (Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Greece, Portugal), suggesting consistent behavior patterns across the regions studied.
➡️ Comfort vs. behaviour change: The need for personal thermal comfort weakened the impact of both attitude and personal moral norms on the intention to lower home temperatures, with people reluctant to reduce heating if it affected their comfort.
➡️ Policy implications: To encourage energy-saving behaviours, interventions should focus on social dynamics, such as using role models and community examples. Addressing personal moral obligations may not be as effective due to the perceived inconvenience of lower temperatures at home.
Read the whole article here: https://lnkd.in/eftDTT2P
Koen Ponnet Marta Gabriel Merkouris Karaliopoulos Andreas Chitos Sabine Preuß Dr. Sabine Pelka Stephanie Van Hove
#research #curtailment #energy #sustainability
