Abstract

Korean government has been implementing a smart grid testbed in Jeju Island for the low-carbon green growth. As smart grids are in the early stage of their diffusion, strategic guidelines and related measures are needed to spread them successfully. In general, the successful diffusion of new technologies or new products are mostly determined in its early stages. With the introduction of smart grids, the electricity market paradigm will be transformed into user-oriented from provider-oriented. Thus, a study on the diffusion of smart grids from the perspective of users is necessary. This paper examines factors affecting the adoption and diffusion of smart grids from users' perspectives and provide strategic guidelines for diffusing the smart grid. Researchers conducted in-depth interviews with 41 people who have been already using smart grids in the Jeju testbed. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. The interviews were recorded on a digital voice recorder memory and subsequently transcribed verbatim. A total of 133 pages of transcripts were obtained from about 10 hours interviews. 97 concepts, 47 sub-categories and 19 categories were identified through open coding of grounded theory. We suggested a paradigm model for diffusing smart grids and total of seven propositions as strategic guidelines.

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