The effects of social influence on low-cost and high-cost household energy-efficient product adoption: a case study in Wuhan

作者：Hua Du, Qi Han, Bauke de Vries · 发表于：Smart and Sustainable Built Environment · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1108/sasbe-11-2023-0338 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Environmental Education and Sustainability、Environmental Sustainability in Business、Building Energy and Comfort Optimization

Purpose Housing energy consumption is a significant contributor to climate change. Encouraging the adoption of energy-efficient products can be an effective way to reduce energy consumption. The impacts of social influences, such as peer effects and social norms, on energy efficiency adoptions were identified; however, these social influences are not quantified and compared with each other or with other influences. This study aims to investigate the choice of energy-efficient product adoption with different costs and how different social influences affect the choice through different processes and paths. Design/methodology/approach Two stated choice experiments were employed in Wuhan, China, to examine the impact of social influences on energy-efficient product adoption in low-cost and high-cost scenarios. Appliance packages (including fridges and washing machines) and heating and cooling systems were used for the two cost scenarios, respectively. The social influences are evaluated in three aspects: positive versus negative information, physical versus online social networks and peer effects versus social norms. Findings The study revealed how various factors, including social influences, impact energy-efficient product choices. Research results show that: (1) social influences have greater and wider impacts in the low-cost scenario than in the high-cost scenario; (2) negative information decreases the adoption of low-cost energy-efficient products, while positive informatio...