Behavior of the household members and home characteristics are the major determinants of residential energy use. This study is focussed on energy-related behavioral patterns. It is based on self-reported behaviors of 145 households in Vlaardingen, The Netherlands.
Energy-related behavior may not be a separate type of behavior but a contingency for other types of household behaviors, such as recreation, child care, and household chores. Two important aspects of energy contingency are home temperature and ventilation. Based on these two components, we distinguish five clusters of behavior or behavioral patterns:conservers, spenders, cool, warm, and average. The energy use of these clusters differs considerably. Consercers use less energy, while spenders use more energy than theaverage group. The coot and the warm cluster use less energy than the average group.
For energy policy, the differences between these behavioral patterns (clusters) are relevant, whereas each cluster is different on sociodemographic and attitudinal variables. This requires different strategies for changing and maintaining energy-related behaviors.
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