Behavioural and environmental sustainability determinants of residential energy management information systems use

Abstract

Notwithstanding appliance energy efficiency and advances in Smart Home Technologies (SHT), residential energy consumption is still on the rise. Residential Energy Management Information Systems (REMIS) that enable users to monitor, analyse, and benchmark energy use and consumption can contribute to energy savings and mitigate unnecessary consumption. Nevertheless, the withdrawal of Microsoft's Hohm and Google's Powermeter and the low adoption rate of smart meters in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia signposts missed opportunities in reducing energy intensity. Thus, the question of how to influence the successful adoption of REMIS and other related sustainable technologies captivates both researchers and practitioners. In this paper, based on a conceptual model developed by integrating the theory of planned behaviour and pro-environment behaviour research, we analysed survey data from 208 Singapore testbed eco-town apartment precinct households. The study found that environmental altruism and sustainability information exposure induce normative pressures towards REMIS use and a sense of volitional control over REMIS use. Furthermore, presence of children and the apartment size moderate the causal relationship between attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control concerning REMIS adoption. These findings offer theoretical and empirical insights to cleaner production, residential energy consumption research and other sustainable technologies use that can contribute to UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also discusses the strategic, policy and design implications for energy and technology providers, and residential energy users.