Stefanie Lena Hille

Advances in understanding energy consumption behavior and the governance of its change : outline of an integrated framework

Transforming today’s energy systems in industrialized countries requires a substantial reduction of the total energy consumption at the individual level. Selected instruments have been found to be effective in changing people’s behavior in single domains. However, the so far weak success story on reducing overall energy consumption indicates that our understanding of the determining factors of individual energy consumption as well as of its change is far from being conclusive. Among others, the scientific state of the art is dominated by analyzing single domains of consumption and by neglecting embodied energy. It also displays strong disciplinary splits and the literature often fails to distinguish between explaining behavior and explaining change of behavior. Moreover, there are knowledge gaps regarding the legitimacy and effectiveness of the governance of individual consumption behavior and its change. Against this backdrop, the aim of this paper is to establish an integrated interdisciplinary framework that offers a systematic basis for linking the different aspects in research on energy related consumption behavior, thus paving the way for establishing a better evidence base to inform societal actions. The framework connects the three relevant analytical aspects of the topic in question: (1) It systematically and conceptually frames the objects, i.e. the energy consumption behavior and its change (explananda); (2) it structures the factors that potentially explain the energy consumption behavior and its change (explanantia); (3) it provides a differentiated understanding of change inducing interventions in terms of governance. Based on the existing states of the art approaches from different disciplines within the social sciences the proposed framework is supposed to guide interdisciplinary empirical research.

Best in Class or Simply the Best? The Impact of Absolute Versus Relative Ecolabeling Approaches

Although research has widely investigated labels across a range of product domains, one understudied area is the use of absolute versus relative rating approaches to information provision. For example, under an absolute rating approach to vehicle ecolabels, the consumer is informed of the actual amount of fuel consumed during use of a vehicle compared with that of all other vehicles on the market. Under a relative rating approach, the fuel consumption is communicated in relative terms, comparing the vehicle only with others in the same class. The current research illustrates that switching from an absolute to a relative rating approach can lead to a reversal effect in the perception of a cars environmental friendliness. For example, a sport-utility vehicle can be perceived as either environmentally friendly or not, depending on the type of rating approach used. The authors demonstrate that visual representation drives this effect, using a colored alphabetical rating scale to communicate environmental performance.

Zielgruppensegmentierung im Ökostrom-Marketing – Ergebnisse einer Conjoint-Analyse deutscher Stromkunden

Verbraucher konnen durch die Wahl von Okostromprodukten zu einer nachhaltigeren Energiezukunft beitragen. Damit das Marketing Kunden „jenseits der Oko-Nische“ erreicht, ist es wichtig zu verstehen, welche Faktoren einen positiven Einfluss auf den Wechsel zu Okostrom haben. Dieser Beitrag analysiert, worin sich aktuelle von potenziellen Okostromkunden unterscheiden. Anhand einer Segmentierungsanalyse, basierend auf Daten einer Conjoint-Analyse unter deutschen Stromkunden, werden drei vielversprechende Zielgruppen identifiziert. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass soziodemografische Faktoren – mit Ausnahme des Bildungsniveaus – bei der Erklarung der Unterschiede zwischen aktuellen und potenziellen Okostromkunden nur eine marginale Rolle spielen. Die Analyse psychografischer und verhaltensorientierter Merkmale zeigt, dass aktuelle Okostromkunden ihren Einfluss als Verbraucher in Bezug auf Umweltschutz als groser wahrnehmen, die Preise fur Okostromtarife niedriger einschatzen, generell eine hohere Zahlungsbereitschaft fur umweltfreundliche Produkte haben und eine hohere Wechselbereitschaft aufweisen als potenzielle Okostromkunden.

Market Segmentation for Green Electricity Marketing Results of a Choice-Based Conjoint Analysis with German Electricity Consumers

Consumers have the power to contribute to creating a more sustainable future by subscribing to green electricity tariffs. To reach consumers “beyond the eco-niche,” identifying the drivers that positively influence the adoption of green electricity is of fundamental importance. This chapter examines various factors that help to explain the extent to which green electricity subscribers differ from those who display strong preferences toward green electricity but have not yet “walked the talk.” By making use of a latent class segmentation analysis based on choice-based conjoint data, this chapter identifies three groups of potential green electricity adopters with varying degrees of preference for renewable energy. Findings indicate that sociodemographic factors play a marginal role in explaining the differences between green electricity subscribers and potential adopters, with the exception that actual adopters tend to be better educated. Analysis of psychographic and behavioral features reveals that adopters tend to perceive consumer effectiveness to be higher, tend to estimate lower prices for green electricity tariffs, are willing to pay significantly more for other eco-friendly products, and are more likely to have recently changed their electricity contract than nonadopters.