TY - UNPB

T1 - Beyond Technology Push vs. Demand Pull

T2 - The Evolution of Solar Policy in the U.S., Germany and China

AU - Hansen, Erik Gunnar

AU - Lüdeke-Freund, Florian

AU - Quan, Xiahong

AU - West, Joel

PY - 2015

Y1 - 2015

N2 - To explain and promote the adoption of new technologies, researchers have debated the relative importance of technology push and demand pull factors (e.g., Schmookler, 1966; Mowery and Rosenberg, 1979; Peters et al, 2012). Here we examine a crucial problem of contemporary innovation policy — promoting the adoption of renewable energy to reduceanthropogenic global warming — that challenges prior models for large scale innovation adoption. From the recommendations of Mowery, Nelson and Martin (2010), we develop a typology of technology push and demand pull policy design principles for renewable energyadoption. We use these principles to analyze a sample of 79 solar energy policies from 1974 to 2011 in the U.S., Germany and China. To go beyond the push/pull dichotomy, we also map these policies to the (solar) value chain. From this, we suggest additions to the model of technology push and demand pull — distinguishing between direct and indirect push and pull — to explain the success of renewable energy policies.

AB - To explain and promote the adoption of new technologies, researchers have debated the relative importance of technology push and demand pull factors (e.g., Schmookler, 1966; Mowery and Rosenberg, 1979; Peters et al, 2012). Here we examine a crucial problem of contemporary innovation policy — promoting the adoption of renewable energy to reduceanthropogenic global warming — that challenges prior models for large scale innovation adoption. From the recommendations of Mowery, Nelson and Martin (2010), we develop a typology of technology push and demand pull policy design principles for renewable energyadoption. We use these principles to analyze a sample of 79 solar energy policies from 1974 to 2011 in the U.S., Germany and China. To go beyond the push/pull dichotomy, we also map these policies to the (solar) value chain. From this, we suggest additions to the model of technology push and demand pull — distinguishing between direct and indirect push and pull — to explain the success of renewable energy policies.

KW - Sustainability sciences, Management & Economics

KW - technology push

KW - demand pull

KW - technology policy

KW - solar photovoltaic

KW - renewable energy

M3 - Working papers

SN - 978-3-942638-49-4

BT - Beyond Technology Push vs. Demand Pull

PB - Centre for Sustainability Management

CY - Lüneburg

ER -