Aggregate Household Behavior in Heating and Cooling Control Strategy and Energy-Efficient Appliance Adoption

Abstract

Using nationally representative household survey data administered by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, in this article, we attempt to analyze the aggregate behavior of households in terms of usage of appliances with explicit temperature control mechanism and the adoption of energy-efficient variants of other appliances. A multivariate probit analysis suggests that the households with larger size, higher income, and higher level of education are more likely to use smart thermostat to control temperature and purchase energy-efficient appliances. To identify the broad classes of household behavior, latent class analysis specifications are used. The optimal specification indicates that there are four broad classes of households. Consistent with the results of the multivariate probit specification, we find that the increased odds of belonging to the smart thermostat/energy-efficient appliance owner category of households over the no control/no energy-efficient appliance owner are related to variables, such as household type, size, and income. Therefore, targeting renters, apartment dwellers, and lower income households through appropriate household incentives and residential regulations are likely to improve outcomes in the adoption of efficient appliances and temperature control strategies.