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Real-time feedback promotes energy conservation in the absence of volunteer selection bias and monetary incentives
Journal
Nature Energy
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2019-01
Author(s)
Abstract
Feedback interventions have proved to be. effective at promoting energy conservation behaviour, and digital technologies have the potential to make interventions more powerful and scalable. In particular, real-time feedback on a specific, energy-intensive activity may induce considerable behaviour change and savings. Yet, the majority of feedback studies that report large effects are conducted with opt-in samples of individuals who volunteer to participate. Here we show that real-time feedback on resource consumption during showering induces substantial energy conservation in an uninformed sample of guests at 6 hotels (265 rooms, N = 19,602 observations). The treatment effects are large (11.4%), indicating that the real-time feedback induced substantial energy conservation among participants who did not opt in, and in a context where participants were not financially responsible for energy costs. We thus provide empirical evidence for real-time feedback as a scalable and cost-efficient policy instrument for fostering resource conservation among the broader public.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
HSG Profile Area
SoM - Business Innovation
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Springer Nature, London GB
Publisher place
Online & Magazine
Volume
4
Start page
34
End page
41
Subject(s)
Division(s)
Eprints ID
255698