The Effects of In-Home Displays—Revisiting the Context

In this paper, we investigate the extent to which the use of in-home displays affects daily practices and electricity consumption. Through two pilot projects, in-home displays were installed in 33 Norwegian homes, and we provide a qualitative analysis of the effects. The results point to the potential differences in the ways households interact with the in-home displays. The effects differed among various groups according to people's previous experiences with monitoring and their level of affluence. In the sample, affluent respondents living in detached houses tended to be accustomed to monitoring consumption before the display was introduced. These families used the display for controlling that "nothing was wrong", but they did not use the information provided by the display to initiate new energy saving measures. In contrast, among less affluent flat owners the notion of "control" was specifically linked to the family's management of finances, and in this sense the displays empowered them. In addition, the results indicate that the in-home display for this group resulted in electricity savings. The study adds to earlier research on the effects of in-home displays by showing the importance of previous experience with monitoring electricity for the effects of feedback and by highlighting not only energy savings but also social effects of displays.

[1]  Kirsten Gram-Hanssen,et al.  New needs for better understanding of household's energy consumption – behaviour, lifestyle or practices? , 2014 .

[2]  C. Vlek,et al.  A review of intervention studies aimed at household energy conservation , 2005 .

[3]  Riccardo Russo,et al.  The question of energy reduction: The problem(s) with feedback , 2015 .

[4]  Sarah C. Darby,et al.  Smart metering: what potential for householder engagement? , 2010 .

[5]  Will Gans,et al.  Smart Meter Devices and the Effect of Feedback on Residential Electricity Consumption: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Northern Ireland , 2011 .

[6]  Michael Nye,et al.  Making energy visible: A qualitative field study of how householders interact with feedback from smart energy monitors , 2010 .

[7]  H. Wilhite,et al.  A cross-cultural analysis of household energy use behaviour in Japan and Norway , 1996 .

[8]  Tanja Winther,et al.  Electricity consumption: should there be a limit? Implications of people’s attitudes for the forming of sustainable energy policies , 2014 .

[9]  E. Shove.  Comfort, Cleanliness and Convenience: The Social Organization of Normality , 2003 .

[10]  Ahmad Faruqui,et al.  The impact of informational feedback on energy consumption d A survey of the experimental evidence , 2010 .

[11]  J. Thøgersen,et al.  Feedback on Household Electricity Consumption: Learning and Social Influence Processes , 2011 .

[12]  武彦 福島.  持続可能性(Sustainability)の要件 , 2006 .

[13]  Rich Ling,et al.  Measured energy savings from a more informative energy bill , 1995 .

[14]  Lene Holm Pedersen.  The dynamics of green consumption: a matter of visibility? , 2000 .

[15]  Harold Wilhite,et al.  Making practice theory practicable: Towards more sustainable forms of consumption , 2014 .

[16]  A. Carlsson-kanyama,et al.  Energy efficiency in residences - Challenges for women and men in the North , 2007 .

[17]  Sherry B. Ortner.  Anthropology and Social Theory: Culture, Power, and the Acting Subject , 2006 .

[18]  J. Schleich,et al.  Effects of feedback on residential electricity demand: Findings from a field trial in Austria , 2013 .

[19]  Michael Nye,et al.  Re-materialising energy use through transparent monitoring systems , 2008 .

[20]  Corinna Fischer.  Feedback on household electricity consumption: a tool for saving energy? , 2008 .

[21]  E. Shove.  Beyond the ABC: Climate Change Policy and Theories of Social Change , 2010 .

[22]  M. Orsini,et al.  Household appropriation of electricity monitors , 2011 .

[23]  Sarah C. Darby,et al.  Metering: EU policy and implications for fuel poor households , 2012 .

[24]  Josep Espluga,et al.  A qualitative study of users' engagement with real-time feedback from in-house energy consumption displays , 2013 .

[25]  SarahDarby,et al.  Smart metering: what potential for householder engagement? , 2010 .

[26]  Hanne Sæle,et al.  Demand Response From Household Customers: Experiences From a Pilot Study in Norway , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid.

[27]  Niamh Murtagh,et al.  20∶60∶20 - Differences in Energy Behaviour and Conservation between and within Households with Electricity Monitors , 2014, PloS one.

[28]  Torgeir Ericson,et al.  Matching policy and people? Household responses to the promotion of renewable electricity , 2013 .

[29]  Tanja Winther,et al.  Electricity, Uncertainty and the Good Life. A Comparison of French and Norwegian Household Responses to Policy Appeals for Sustainable Energy , 2013 .

[30]  A. Carlsson-kanyama,et al.  Efficient and inefficient aspects of residential energy behaviour: What are the policy instruments for change? , 2006 .