Clustering household energy-saving behaviours by behavioural attribute

Abstract

Research on household energy conservation often categorizes targeted behaviours by their behavioural attributes (e.g., savings, cost, frequency). The most common distinction in the literature divides behaviours as follows: (1) low-impact, low-cost, repetitive behaviours that result in a loss of comfort or curtailment behaviours and (2) high-impact, high-cost, infrequent behaviours that result in no loss of amenities or efficiency behaviours. However, such categorizations have often been ad hoc and two-dimensional (e.g., low-impact vs. high-impact, low-cost vs. high-cost). In contrast, we systematically assess a large range of household energysaving behaviours (N=261) across nine attributes-energy savings, cost, frequency of performance, required skill level, observability, locus of decision, household function, home topography, and appliance topography. By clustering behaviours according to these attributes, we discern four clusters of energy-saving behaviours: family style, call an expert, household management and weekend project. We discuss the implications of these clusters for intervention design.

It's what you do and where you do it: Perceived similarity in household water saving behaviours

“…This supports previous research distinguishing between curtailment and efficiency behaviours (e.g. Barr et al, 2005;Karlin et al, 2014;Boudet et al, 2016). Our findings suggest a clear division in perceptions between curtailment and efficiency behaviours, as they mapped onto opposite sides of the biplot (Figures 1 & 2).…”

“…Studies on energy saving behaviours have shown that location is an important theme impacting how people categorise actions related to energy saving (Boudet et al, 2016;Gabe-Thomas, Walker, Verplanken, & Shaddick, 2016). For water related behaviours, the significance of location could relate to the different services provided by household water M A N U S C R I P T A C C E P T E D ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT consumption inside and outside the home.…”

“…Additional dimensions have been proposed for objective categorisation of energysaving behaviours (Boudet, Flora & Armel, 2016). An analysis of 261 energy-saving behaviours on nine attributes, including impact, cost, frequency, skill required and location (Boudet, Flora & Armel, 2016) produced four behavioural categories, including 'family style'…”

“…(frequent, low-cost, low-skill behaviours) and 'call an expert' (infrequent, financially costly, high-skill behaviours) (Boudet et al, 2016). In contrast, an international study of selfreported participation in ten energy-saving behaviours (n>10,000) produced a onedimensional class through Rasch modelling (Urban & Ščasný, 2016).…”

Penghematan Listrik Rumah Tangga dalam Menunjang Kestabilan Energi Nasional dan Kelestarian Lingkungan

“…Keberagaman latar belakang status sosial dan pendidikan dari individu dalam rumah tangga menjadi salah satu tantangan dalam melakukan edukasi terhadap upaya penghematan energi listrik nasional (12,13) . Namun di sisi lain, individu dalam rumah tangga juga diyakini mampu menjadi agen yang efektif dalam kegiatan upaya penghematan ini (14,15) , karena dengan tumbuhnya kesadaran dari tiap individu rumah tangga terhadap pentingnya upaya penghematan listrik diyakini akan berdampak besar pada keberhasilan program penghematan secara nasional maupun global yang telah diprogramkan pemerintah.…”