Progress of increasing-block electricity pricing policy implementation in China's first-tier cities and the impact of resident policy perception

Abstract

Based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the policy acceptance model (PAM), this study innovatively incorporated policy perception into a theoretical model of residential electricity-saving behavior. Thus, we demonstrated the factors that influence the residential electricity-saving feedback after the implementation of the increasing-block electricity pricing policy (IBP). A questionnaire survey was conducted, and the data was empirically tested on 3108 residents in four typical first-tier cities in China. The results indicated that the perceived economic usefulness, perceived environmental usefulness, and perceived ease of use of the IBP all significantly and positively influenced residents' cutting and investing in electricity-saving feedback. Gender and city heterogeneity were also tested. In addition, questionnaire data from 2016 and 2022 were analyzed in comparison. The results showed that residents' concerns about electricity information, attitudes towards electricity saving, and policy cognition all increased to varying degrees in recent years. Finally, policy recommendations were proposed to promote residents’ policy perception and IBP energy-saving feedback.