MSP3: Consumer Behaviour in an Integrated Energy System

Consumers may influence the development and regulation of energy systems, as energy producers, as participants in organizations and institutions, and as parties affected by energy systems (Stern, 2014). Hence, consumers play an important role in an integrated energy system. This WP addresses a main challenge in this respect: consumers’ willingness to accept and adopt necessary technological changes and adapt their (energy, gas and water) consumption patterns (Wüstenhagen et al., 2007). Most existing interventions rely on a combination of financial and social influence strategies to change consumer behaviour, which can either strengthen or undermine the overall effect on consumers’ acceptance levels and behaviour, depending on their underlying motives (e.g. attitudes, values and perceptions of e.g. risk, trust and uncertainty). The objective of this WP is to empirically test how various (financial and social influence) interventions affect consumers’ technology acceptance (i.e. feedback systems such as smart thermostats or smart control systems), willingness to invest, and their energy, gas and water consumption patterns, particularly in the long term.

 

Members


Dr Eleanor Denny
Associate Professor of Economics, Trinity College Dublin
dennye@tcd.ie
01 896 1069
Dr Geertje Schuitema
Assistant Professor, School of Business, University College Dublin
geertje.schuitema@ucd.ie
Dr Lisa Ryan
Assistant Professor, School of Economics, University College Dublin
lisa.ryan@ucd.ie
+353 1 716 8212
Ivan Petrov
PhD Researcher
ivan.petrov@ucdconnect.ie
Vanja Medugorac
PhD Researcher
vanja.medugorac@ucdconnect.ie