Beyond the Energy Poor/Non Energy Poor Divide: Energy Vulnerability and Mindsets on Energy Generation Modes in Hungary

Adrienne Csizmady,Zoltán Ferencz,Lea Kőszeghy,Gergely Tóth

doi:10.3390/en14206487

Adrienne Csizmady, Zoltán Ferencz + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/en14206487

Copy DOI

Abstract

In the Hungarian as well as the international literature, debates regarding the methodology used for measuring energy poverty are ongoing. Our contribution sought to develop a methodology that would be relatively easy to measure via survey and have the potential to identify households’ energy vulnerability status beyond the energy poor/non energy poor divide. Based on a representative survey that was carried out in Hungary in 2018, we identified three groups of households: energy poor, non energy poor households, and a so-called transitional group, potentially at risk of energy poverty. In addition to socioeconomic differences, we analysed differences in the mindsets of respondents belonging to these three household groups concerning different aspects of heating energy generation (macrolevel aspects, such as environmental sustainability and energy supply system issues, and microlevel aspects, such as economic and technical issues). By this, the article aims to provide input for further research on factors, beyond the social and economic background, related to energy vulnerability.

Highlights

Society is increasingly dependent on energy: more and more activities that constitute individuals’ membership in contemporary society require energy [1,2]
We described the typical characteristics of these groups, such as urban–rural differences and household typology
We examined the mindsets of different groups of users concerning heating energy generation, in order to gain a better understanding of differences between the established groups

Summary

Introduction

Society is increasingly dependent on energy: more and more activities that constitute individuals’ membership in contemporary society require energy [1,2]. Access to energy is becoming a major factor in social inclusion and exclusion. Energy poverty is a phenomenon that affects an estimated 54 million people in the European Union (EU) [3] and almost one million in Hungary [4]. The conceptualization of the phenomenon as households’ inability to secure a socially and materially necessitated level of energy services in the home [5], emphasizes the interaction between access to energy and social exclusion. Inequalities in access to energy [6] may have a significant impact on social structure by contributing to increased social inequalities. Social status is one of the most important factors influencing energy consumption [7,8]

Objectives

Methods

Results