Analysis of critical factors and their interactions influencing individual’s energy conservation behavior in the workplace: A case study in China

Abstract

Energy conservation in the building sector is a major target worldwide, and individual’s energy conservation behavior is considered a critical means to meet energy conservation goals. Although individual’s energy conservation behavior has been explored, its formation mechanism in the workplace remains unclear. This study aims to investigate the effect of the determinants of energy conservation behavior in the workplace based on the extended theory of planned behavior model. The novelty of this study is that it extends the theory of planned behavior with the consideration of actual behavior controls. This study is also one of the first studies to identify the effect of user experience on energy saving behavior. Questionnaire survey was used for data collection, and structural equation modeling was applied to develop the structural model. Results show that individual’s comfort is the most critical impact factor, followed by user experience and supervision. Intention has a limited effect on energy saving behavior. Moreover, three strategies were proposed to promote energy conservation behavior in the workplace from the perspectives of design, supervision, and punishment. These findings will not only help researchers in conducting further in-depth research on the mechanism of individual’s energy conservation behavior but also practitioners in proposing other effective strategies to promote energy conservation behavior.