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Improving energy efficiency includes a number of measures implemented as part of the greening of the energy industry, which in turn is a prerequisite for the creation of a sustainable energy industry to ensure energy and environmental security for the world. Despite the adoption of the EU directives on energy efficiency, there is still insufficient public awareness in this area in Poland and Slovakia. This is particularly surprising because improving energy efficiency not only brings national and global benefits, but also has a significant impact on the well-being of individuals and households. The main purpose of the paper is to analyze the national policies of Poland and Slovakia, which are based on the European Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency, and which introduce new measures aimed not only at increasing energy efficiency, but also at increasing the well-being of households and individuals. Methods of desk research and content analysis were used. The current situation in both countries is illustrated by case studies that document the administrative process (Slovakia) and the calculation of energy savings (Poland) when using renewable energy sources in the case of family houses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domestic appliances play a vital role in modern households. Appliances help simplify domestic work, but individuals become dependent on them. The present paper aims to contribute to the long-standing dilemma among scholars whether domestic appliances help to shorten the time devoted to household chores or not. The paper focuses on the utilization of various domestic appliances in Slovak households and on the influence of their utilization on the time of men and women in partner households and in the single-person households devoted to routine unpaid work activities. The results of the paper are based on the data from original field research conducted in Slovakia in 2015. A total of 1179 partner households, 182 single-man households and 226 single-woman households were included in the analysis. The jamovi version 1.2 statistical program was used to verify the hypothesis by chi-squared goodness of fit test and nonparametric Mann–Whitney U-test. In partner households and in single-man households, usage of automatic washing machines significantly influences time devoted to preparation and maintenance of the clothes. In single-woman households, usage of dishwasher significantly influences time devoted to food preparation. In partner households, men devote less time to routine unpaid work activities than women, regardless of usage or non-usage of domestic appliances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]