1. Reducing consumption of electricity: A field experiment in Monaco with boosts and goal setting
- Author
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Nathalie Lazaric, Mira Toumi, Groupe de Recherche en Droit, Economie et Gestion (GREDEG), Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (... - 2019) (UNS), COMUE Université Côte d'Azur (2015-2019) (COMUE UCA)-COMUE Université Côte d'Azur (2015-2019) (COMUE UCA)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Côte d'Azur (UCA), and ESIA
- Subjects
Economics and Econometrics ,020209 energy ,Field experiment ,Control (management) ,050109 social psychology ,Context (language use) ,02 engineering and technology ,environmental profile ,0202 electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,Goal setting ,Boost ,General Environmental Science ,Consumption (economics) ,goal setting ,electricity consumption ,business.industry ,05 social sciences ,Electricity conservation ,Environmental economics ,[SHS.ECO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Economics and Finance ,nudges ,field experiment ,Complementarity (molecular biology) ,Electricity ,business - Abstract
International audience; We investigate the complementarity among different treatments which involved "boosts" (provision of information) and "goals" (ambitious or modest goals) by means of a field experiment conducted in the Principality of Monaco between December 2018 and May 2019. We collected data from 77 households in four groups: ambitious electricity reduction goal combined with information (Treatment 1), modest electricity reduction goal combined with information (Treatment 2), only information (Treatment 3), and a control group (CG). Treatments 1 and 2 increased the chances of reduced electricity consumption. We show that a modest, more realistic electricity saving goal when combined with a "boost" generates better electricity conservation performance (T2). We explore the link between behavioral strategies and the household's concern for the environment in the context of the new ecological paradigm (NEP). Our results show that treatments T1 and T2 are efficient for reducing electricity consumption only in households with high levels of environmental concern; those whose level of concern about the environment is low will not respond to any of the behavioral interventions. We provide some recommendations for the implementation of behavioral tools and "boosts".
- Published
- 2022