Abstract
The UK needs to accelerate action to achieve its 80 per cent carbon reduction target by 2050 as it is otherwise in danger of lagging behind. A much discussed question in this context is whether voluntary behaviour change initiatives can make a significant contribution to reaching this target.While providing individuals with general information on climate change or low carbon action is increasingly seen as ineffective, some studies argue that personalised information has greater potential to encourage behaviour change. This mixed methods study examines this claim through a longitudinal field experiment which tested the effectiveness of a carbon calculator interview. It finds that the intervention significantly raised awareness of ways in which participants could reduce their carbon footprint. However, this increased awareness did not translate into measurable behaviour changes in relation to home energy and travel. Qualitative analysis shows that participants refer to infrastructural, social and psychological barriers to change. This indicates that more ambitious government and corporate action is required to speed up carbon reduction.
Highlights
The Climate Change Act 2008 commits the UK to reduce CO2 emissions by 80 per cent by 2050, compared to a 1990 baseline
While providing individuals with general information on these topics is increasingly seen as ineffective, some studies claim that personalised information which is tailored to the recipient's situation, for instance feedback on their personal energy use or carbon footprints, or personalised energy saving tips, achieves better results in encouraging behaviour change
This paper examines this claim through a longitudinal field experiment which tests the effectiveness of a carbon calculator interview
Summary
The Climate Change Act 2008 commits the UK to reduce CO2 emissions by 80 per cent by 2050, compared to a 1990 baseline. In order to determine whether investing in developing and scaling up such strategies to the national level would be worthwhile, it is important to examine whether this has the potential to effectively support the uptake of low carbon behaviours in the long term. It is important to test the effectiveness of the carbon calculator using actual energy use, which is possible for home energy and car travel, instead of self-reported behaviours, and to examine change over the long term. This is achieved in this study by comparing changes in measured energy use in the year before the intervention to the year after the intervention.
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