Exploring the effects of California's COVID-19 shelter-in-place order on household energy practices and intention to adopt smart home technologies

Abstract

To contain the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), local and state governments in the U.S. have imposed restrictions on daily life, resulting in dramatic changes to how and where people interact, travel, socialize, and work. Using a social practice perspective, we explore how California's Shelter-in-Place (SIP) order impacted household energy activities. To do so, we conducted an online survey of California residents (n = 804) during active SIP restrictions (May 5–18, 2020). We asked respondents about changes to home occupancy patterns and household energy activities (e.g., cooking, electronics usage) due to SIP restrictions, as well as perspectives toward smart energy technologies. Households reported increased midday (10am–3pm) occupancy during SIP, and this increase is related to respondent and household characteristics, such as education and the presence of minors in the home. Examining change in the frequency of household activities during SIP, presence of minors and increased midday occupancy proved important. Finally, we considered relationships to intention to purchase smart home technologies, with the presence of minors and increased activity frequency relating to greater intention to purchase. These findings demonstrate how household activities and occupancy changed under COVID restrictions, how these changes may be related to energy use in the home, and how such COVID-related changes could be shaping perspectives toward smart home technology, potentially providing insight into future impacts on household practices and electricity demand.

Impact of the Lockdown during the COVID-19 Pandemic on Electricity Use by Residential Users

“…A survey conducted after a period of strict lockdown in California [80] confirmed the interest of household users in buying and implementing smart home technology (especially in families with children), where the motivation is to save energy expenditure and improve interaction with devices to improve their comfort and home environment (including exposure to social media). The implementation of such technologies can be costly in the short term, especially for families with limited income security due to the COVID-19 situation.…”

“…Paper [79] investigates the factors influencing residents' willingness to adopt and pay for HEMS and their relationship with the new living dynamics during the quarantine period in a pandemic such as COVID-19. The restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic could help focus new attention on the relationship between household activities and energy use, helping people realize the importance of smart home technologies and in the transition to the Smart Grid [80].…”

Public preferences for five electricity grid decarbonization policies in California

“…Compared to California‐wide population estimates, the differences in this survey sample do not exceed 1% for matched demographic categories (gender, age, and educational attainment), and our sample is also similar to California population estimates on unmatched demographic and household characteristics, including race/ethnicity (56.6% white alone in survey sample vs. 60.1% in the ACS) and household income (median category of $60,000–$69,999 in survey sample vs. median household income of $71,228 in the ACS). See Zanocco et al (2021) for more information about this survey.…”

Social practices and energy use at home during the first Italian lockdown due to Covid-19

“…Besides having a whole range of negative consequences for society, the pandemic is an opportunity to analyse the social facets of changes in people’s habits and energy use. Energy consumption and use arises “from complex and necessarily social configurations of human action” ( Parekh and Klintman, 2020 , Zanocco et al, 2020 ), linking norms, attitudes, and social roles, household dynamics and relationships ( Outcault, Sanguinetti, & Pritoni, 2018 ). Several research fields have investigated energy-related behaviours in the past such as cooking, cleaning, showering, and working.…”

“…Indeed, the change in habits and practices is a slow process in ‘normal’ life ( Shove & Walker, 2010 ). The COVID-19-related lockdown became an opportunity to observe and investigate rapid changes in daily habits and domestic energy uses ( Sovacool et al, 2020 , Zanocco et al, 2020 ).…”