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Motivating Household Energy Conservation Using Feedback and Social Nudges: A Field Experiment

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dc.contributor.advisorChristine Crago
dc.contributor.advisorJohn Spraggon
dc.contributor.authorHunter, Elizabeth
dc.contributor.departmentUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst
dc.contributor.departmentResource Economics
dc.date2024-03-28T20:48:58.000
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-26T18:18:23Z
dc.date.available2024-04-26T18:18:23Z
dc.date.submittedFebruary
dc.date.submitted2016
dc.description.abstractIn the context of climate change and heightened concerns about our energy future, academics and policy makers have taken an interest in the different motivational factors influencing individuals’ energy-use behavior. One area of particular interest is the role of information and other non-financial motivators: When traditional financial incentives are not appropriate or inadequate, are there alternative means we can use to encourage energy conservation? Our research looks at the effect of two different types of information programs used to promote household energy conservation: feedback and social nudges. To do this we conducted a field experiment at a family housing complex where the cost of electricity is included in the rent. Residents were presented with weekly Home Electricity Reports [HERs] with feedback on their electricity use. A portion of the residents additionally received HERs with information about how their electricity consumption compared to their neighbors (a social nudge). We then monitored households’ electricity-use to see if we could detect any changes. Overall we estimated a 1.4 percent reduction in energy-use as a result of the feedback treatment. This figure increased to a 3.9 percent reduction when the sample was restricted to households that received low-user status during the pre-treatment period. Low-users also appeared to react to the social nudge, however, the reaction depended on whether the household had received an HER indicating that it consumed above- or below- average the week before. Time-of-day analysis suggested that the majority of the changes in electricity-use behavior occurred during evening and night hours.
dc.description.degreeMaster of Science (M.S.)
dc.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.7275/7783614
dc.identifier.orcidN/A
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14394/33327
dc.relation.urlhttps://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1330&context=masters_theses_2&unstamped=1
dc.source.statuspublished
dc.subjectEnergy conservation
dc.subjectfield experiment
dc.subjectutility-inclusive rental contracts
dc.subjectsocial nudges
dc.subjectfeedback
dc.subjectresidential sector
dc.titleMotivating Household Energy Conservation Using Feedback and Social Nudges: A Field Experiment
dc.typeopenaccess
dc.typearticle
dc.typethesis
digcom.contributor.authorisAuthorOfPublication|email:ehunter@umass.edu|institution:University of Massachusetts Amherst|Hunter, Elizabeth
digcom.identifiermasters_theses_2/325
digcom.identifier.contextkey7783614
digcom.identifier.submissionpathmasters_theses_2/325
dspace.entity.typePublication
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