Energy Conservation Attitudes Research Articles

Does China's low-carbon city pilot intervention limit electricity consumption? An analysis of industrial energy efficiency using time-varying DID model

Emissions depletion through pro-environmental interventions by top emitters like China has profound significance in improving the atmosphere's cumulative carbon efficiency. China's electricity sector is accountable for almost 40% of its total aggregated emissions, indicating that China's electricity sector does not yet follow the energy conservation and energy efficiency theories, which require urgent attention if China aspires to achieve carbon emissions peak and neutrality by 2030 and 2050, respectively. Chinese lawmakers have adopted pro-environmental interventions to limit emissions, like constructing low-carbon city pilots (LCCP). LCCP intervention has successfully curbed emissions in China's major cities, which earlier studies have validated. However, no study assesses whether the LCCP intervention supports enterprises in reducing their electric energy consumption intensity (EECI) by upgrading their energy conservation attitude and improving power efficiency. To address this fundamental question, we construct a time-varying difference-in-difference (DID) model to comprehensively investigate the consequences of LCCP intervention on EECI, using matched data from the Chinese Enterprise Pollution Emissions Database and the Chinese Industrial Enterprise Database from 2007 to 2014. The findings unfold as follows: 1) The LCCP intervention significantly reduces the firm's electricity consumption intensity (i.e., a one percentage point increase in LCCP curbs EECI by 3.14%). 2) We observe significant heterogeneity in the effect of LCCP on EECI based on the ownership, location, and input characteristics of the intervened firms (i.e., LCCP has an insignificant effect on EECI for firms that are state-owned, labor-driven, and located in western zones. However, it has a more substantial inhibitory effect on EECI for firms that are: located in non-resource-based cities, foreign and private-owned, capital and technology-driven, and non-western). 3) The LCCP intervention promotes enterprises' power consumption via the energy-saving and green innovation effects, which boosts enterprises' energy conservation attitude and energy efficiency in the long term. The conclusion remains untapped after mitigating sequence-related issues, limiting the influence of alternative policies, employing lagged terms, and deploying different estimation strategies (i.e., PSM-DID). Several policies have been advocated in line with the findings in the ultimate section.

USAGE INTENTIONS, ATTITUDES, AND BEHAVIORS TOWARDS ENERGY-EFFICIENT APPLICATIONS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Energy waste is an emerging issue worldwide, with energy conservation goals, such as conscious energy consumption, playing a crucial role in helping the environment. The rapid growth of smart appliances has led to the development of mobile applications, with an increased interest among policymakers to design eco-saving plans for optimizing power and battery consumption. This study aims to explore the usage intention of energy-efficient applications, through young consumers’ energy conservation behavior, behavioral characteristics, and COVID-19 pandemic experience. Based on empirical investigation, a survey was applied in Romania among 590 mobile app users. The data were tested using partial least square structural equation modeling (SmartPLS, version 3). The results indicate the impact of behavioral characteristics, namely, energy conservation attitude, subjective norms, and environmental knowledge on young users’ energy conservation behavior. The influential effect of COVID-19 on energy-saving behavior was also proven. Energy conservation behavior, and functional and hedonic values positively influence Millennials’ and Gen Zers’ energy-efficient app usage intentions. The study also discusses some implications for policymakers, marketers, and software developers, as well as providing theoretical suggestions for future work.

Energy conservation attitudes and intentions: investigating place attachment in Eastern Transylvania, Romania (Actitudes e intenciones respecto al ahorro de energía: investigando el apego al lugar en Transilvania Oriental, Rumanía)

ABSTRACT This study explores the relationship between place attachment and energy conservation attitudes and behavioural intentions in the Pogány-havas microregion of Romania. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to examine three dimensions of place attachment: place identity, place dependence and nature bonding. While place attachment in the region is high, structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed negative links between place dependence and energy conservation attitudes and between place identity and behavioural intention. However, insignificant regression weights between the constructs suggest there are many unexplained factors that mediate the relationship between place attachment and energy attitudes and behavioural intentions in this region. These results suggest that future research on rural energy transitions should take a systemic perspective that includes additional constraints (e.g., material and structural) that may better explain how individuals develop energy attitudes and behaviours.

Residential smart thermostat use: An exploration of thermostat programming, environmental attitudes, and the influence of smart controls on energy savings

Smart home technologies are becoming prevalent in residential buildings. Despite interface and control improvements offered by smart thermostats, previous work has found energy savings from this technology to be variable. Further, little is known about how smart thermostat operation differs from conventional programmable thermostat operation, which has been studied extensively. In this paper, data from 54 smart thermostats installed in two high-rise residential buildings are used to characterize smart thermostat programming and occupant interaction behaviours. Survey data are also used to examine how environmental attitudes and technical abilities influence thermostat usage behaviours. Smart thermostat programming rates were higher than those previously found for conventional programmable thermostats, likely due to improved thermostat interfaces. Further, programmed schedule accuracy was high (88% occupancy during scheduled unoccupied periods). Participants programmed substantial setforwards (cooling season average of 2.8 °C) and setbacks (heating season average of 3.8 °C) to be used when their home is unoccupied. Override behaviours were generally not problematic: most overrides had short durations or were frequently adjusted by users. Strong environmental attitudes and technical skills also appeared to result in more energy-conscious thermostat use behaviours, however, due to the population demographics, specific relationships between energy conservation attitudes and thermostat use behaviours were unclear. An analysis of thermostat schedules and setpoints considering measured occupancy data indicated that participant-programmed schedules achieved significant HVAC load reductions when compared to a scenario in which no schedule was programmed. Further, the use of occupancy-based controls, whether alone or in combination with a schedule, was shown to improve energy savings.

Sufficiency before efficiency: Consumers' profiling and barriers/facilitators of energy efficient behaviours

Even if consumers have positive attitudes towards the environment and household energy conservation measures, and are seemingly motivated to implement them, there are factors that function as barriers to such behaviours. The literature is still insufficient in exploring variables with such negative influence and in identifying ways of shielding consumers against it. A first step towards the latter can be achieved through energy consumers' psychosocial profiles identification, i.e. configurations of consumer characteristics based on a set of psychosocial factors. To contribute in this regard, a nationwide survey of Portuguese householders aimed to identify: 1) psychosocial factors that may function as barriers or facilitators to energy conservation measures implementation; and 2) psychosocial consumer profiles defined based on facilitators, i.e. factors with a positive/facilitative influence over such implementation. Despite highly positive environmental and energy conservation attitudes, householders reported that what they did was “sufficient”. This perceived “sufficiency” functioned as a justification for not “doing more” which, in addition to consumption estimation biases, seemingly constituted energy conservation barriers. Additionally, a k-means Cluster Analysis identified specific configurations of psychosocial factors – consumer profiles – that may function as energy conservation facilitators. Applying procedures as exemplified in this study may therefore enable tailoring behaviour change interventions to the different identified energy consumer's profiles, in order to promote energy efficient household behaviours.

Energy conservation attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors in science laboratories

Energy use per square foot from science research labs is disproportionately higher than that of other rooms in buildings on campuses across the nation. This is partly due to labs’ use of energy intensive equipment. However, laboratory management and personnel behavior may be significant contributing factors to energy consumption. Despite an apparent increasing need for energy conservation in science labs, a systematic investigation of avenues promoting energy conservation behavior in such labs appears absent in scholarly literature. This paper reports the findings of a recent study into the energy conservation knowledge, attitude and behavior of principle investigators, laboratory managers, and student lab workers at a tier 1 research university. The study investigates potential barriers as well as promising avenues to reducing energy consumption in science laboratories. The findings revealed: (1) an apparent lack of information about options for energy conservation in science labs, (2) existing operational barriers, (3) economic issues as barriers/motivators of energy conservation and (4) a widespread notion that cutting edge science may be compromised by energy conservation initiatives.

Energy Conservation Behaviour of Individuals: A New Age Imperative for Sustainable Development

Role of human behaviour in mitigating climate change, controlling Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, reducing carbon footprint leading to sustainable development, is at the centre of all policy discussions across the globe, thereby tailoring human behaviour is considered imperative by contemporary scholarship. This study attempts to understand the psycho-social interaction of individuals that promote such a human action. Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) framework has been used to predict human behaviour assuming human behaviour for energy conservation is one of the pro-social low-cost behaviour. Value orientation of individuals, energy conservation beliefs, subjective norms, perceived behaviour control, and energy conservation attitude have been measured to gauge the behavioural intention, along with capturing the socio-economic realities pertaining to households and individuals therein. Awareness towards energy conservation efforts and social interaction are found to be key behaviour influencers, whereas energy conservation intent is found to be gender neutral. Study implies the underlying necessity to explore mediating and moderating models in order to decipher complex inter-play among key variables for predicting energy conservation behaviour intent.

Public regardingness in energy conservation attitudes

Though many studies have explored public attitudes concerning energy conservation programs, few have addressed attitudes which are specifically political in the sense of addressing the relationship between the individual and the community or state. The paper suggests a role in evaluation research for the study of political values that are potentially relevant to energy conservation policy. The concept of public regardingness helps to define such values. The paper develops the concept of public regardingness, and examines state-level survey data concerning public regarding attitudes. The findings suggest that the public regarding component of attitudes concerning energy conservation is weak and unrelated to variables including income, education, and race. The implications of this finding for the future of energy policy are suggested.

Adolescent Energy Conservation: Dimensions of Attitude‐Behavior Consistency

The purpose of this study was to analyze the nature of the relationship between energy conservation attitudes and behaviors of adolescents in the use of energy for personal and family‐related activities. Specifically, the study was designed to determine a level of attitude‐behavior consistency for each respondent and cor responding levels of selected attitudinal qualities. The association of selected demographic characteristics and attitude‐behavior consistency was also deter mined. Data were collected from 227 eleventh and twelfth grade students en rolled in both urban and rural public schools. The dependent variable was the attitude‐behavior consistency score. Independent variables included demo graphic characteristics as well as levels of attitudinal quality defined as affective, cognitive, and direct experience. The relationship existing between attitude and behavior was tested using correlational statistical analysis. Multiple regression, factorial analysis of variance, and t‐tests were used to determine significant sources of variance upon the consistency score. Energy conservation attitudes and behaviors of adolescents were found to be significantly correlated. Differ ences in the consistency of attitude and behavior were found to be significantly associated with sex and employment of adolescents. No significant differences in consistency were found to be associated with other demographic variables tested or with levels of attitudinal qualities measured.

Disseminating Energy Efficient Clothing Information: A Comparison of Two Methods

As energy conservation practices have become commonplace, publications regarding energy efficient clothing are increasingly available. This study focused on the effect of the method of dissemination of energy efficient clothing information on knowledge, attitudes and behavior. A booklet and a slidetape program were the experimental treatments designed for this study. One-way analysis of variance and Newman-Keuls follow-up procedures were used to examine the differences between two treatment groups and a control group on the knowledge, attitudes and behavior variables. Results indicated that knowledge of energy efficient clothing was higher among subjects exposed to either print or visual material than among those who were not. No differences were found in energy conservation attitudes and few differences were found in behavior change between the three groups.

Demographics, attitudes, and behavioral responses to important environmental events

In order to assess energy conservation attitudes and behaviors an Environmental Quality Questionnaire was developed and administered to college and residential respondents at three different times between December 1973 and March 1975. Numerous Respondent-Type, Time, and Time X Type interactions were obtained on various measures of the perceived causes and solutions of energy problems as well as the nature of conservation behaviors that were performed most frequently. The data appear to suggest the need for governmental supports to increase and maintain consumer conservation efforts. These results are discussed with respect to their implications for conservation strategies and the role of the psychologist in their implementation and evaluation.