What motivates people to use energy feedback systems? A multiple goal approach to predict long-term usage behaviour in daily life
Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review
Standard
In: Energy Research and Social Science, Vol. 21, 01.11.2016, p. 155-166.
Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review
Harvard
APA
Vancouver
Bibtex
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
T1 - What motivates people to use energy feedback systems? A multiple goal approach to predict long-term usage behaviour in daily life
AU - Gölz, Sebastian
AU - Hahnel, Ulf J.J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2016 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2016/11/1
Y1 - 2016/11/1
N2 - Feedback systems on energy consumption are being provided more and more worldwide. However, the success of these systems in terms of increasing energy efficiency in households is still limited. We assume that this circumstance is due to the fact that present energy feedback systems primarily address individuals’ financial goals, thereby neglecting the fact that people may carry a set of multiple goals towards usage. In three preliminary studies and one main study, we examined the underlying goals which motivate people to use web-based feedback on their own electricity consumption. We identified and replicated four distinct goals towards feedback usage: having fun, learning how to save electricity, controlling and reducing costs, and avoiding inconvenience due to perceived negative impacts of feedback usage. In the Main Study, we investigated a sample from a smart meter field trial (N = 345) and applied a model-based cluster analysis to identify distinguishable goal profiles based on the four goal factors. We analysed the predictive power of the identified multiple goal profiles on participants’ actual usage of feedback for a time span of six months. The findings support the assumption that individuals carry multiple goals towards feedback usage which can be empirically clustered into distinguishable profiles.
AB - Feedback systems on energy consumption are being provided more and more worldwide. However, the success of these systems in terms of increasing energy efficiency in households is still limited. We assume that this circumstance is due to the fact that present energy feedback systems primarily address individuals’ financial goals, thereby neglecting the fact that people may carry a set of multiple goals towards usage. In three preliminary studies and one main study, we examined the underlying goals which motivate people to use web-based feedback on their own electricity consumption. We identified and replicated four distinct goals towards feedback usage: having fun, learning how to save electricity, controlling and reducing costs, and avoiding inconvenience due to perceived negative impacts of feedback usage. In the Main Study, we investigated a sample from a smart meter field trial (N = 345) and applied a model-based cluster analysis to identify distinguishable goal profiles based on the four goal factors. We analysed the predictive power of the identified multiple goal profiles on participants’ actual usage of feedback for a time span of six months. The findings support the assumption that individuals carry multiple goals towards feedback usage which can be empirically clustered into distinguishable profiles.
KW - Feedback usage
KW - Model-based cluster analysis
KW - Multiple goal profiles
KW - Smart metering
KW - Sustainability sciences, Management & Economics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84982743651&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.erss.2016.07.006
DO - 10.1016/j.erss.2016.07.006
M3 - Journal articles
AN - SCOPUS:84982743651
VL - 21
SP - 155
EP - 166
JO - Energy Research and Social Science
JF - Energy Research and Social Science
SN - 2214-6296
ER -