Innovation and organizational networks : barriers to energy efficiency in the US housing industry

Abstract Models that assume optimizing consumers and rational firms fail to account for market resistance to cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements. This paper looks for clues in social science research on organizations and technology change. An alternative model derived from those literatures is proposed which focuses on the role of organizational networks in shaping and constraining innovation. This perspective is applied to data from a study of residential cooling, in which we find that producer networks routinely limit technology transfer in a variety of ways. Some of the influences of market factors, industry structure, technical knowledge and ancillary network actors (eg architects, appraisers, realtors, lenders, utility managers and code officials) are explored. Non-energy developments that are likely to influence future energy-efficiency choices in these systems are also considered, and research and policy recommendations are offered.

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