IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bcp/journl/v9y2025issue-9p8162-8173.html

Sustainable Energy Transition among SMEs: Conceptualizing Determinants of Intention to Adopt Solar Energy Technology

Author

Listed:
  • Usha Devi Raman

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

  • Shishi Kumar Piaralal

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

  • Nur Amalina Zulkefli

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

  • Yon Rosli Daud

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

  • Sazrin Mohd Mohtar

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

  • Ahmad Aiman Dahakim

    (Faculty of Business and Management, Open University Malaysia, 47301, Selangor, Malaysia.)

Abstract

The accelerating impacts of climate change underscore the urgency of transitioning to sustainable energy sources, with solar energy emerging as a promising option due to its abundance, cost efficiency, and environmental benefits. Despite Malaysia’s abundant solar potential and favorable policy environment, the adoption of Solar Energy Technology (SET) among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remains limited. Given SMEs’ critical role in driving economic growth and sustainability, understanding the determinants of their adoption intention is essential. This conceptual study examines multiple factors influencing SMEs’ intention to adopt SET. Specifically, it considers technical and economic factors (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived level of competition pressure, and perceived price), dispositional and organizational factors (perceived relative advantage, entrepreneur’s awareness, entrepreneur’s technology readiness, and SMEs’ readiness), as well as an environmental factor (government’s support and initiative). Furthermore, the study examines two mediating effects, where perceived usefulness mediates the relationship between relative advantage and adoption intention, and perceived ease of use mediates the relationship between technology readiness and adoption intention. The findings are expected to advance theoretical perspectives on technology adoption in the renewable energy context and provide practical insights to guide policymakers, industry stakeholders, and SME owners in accelerating solar adoption and supporting Malaysia’s energy transition.

Suggested Citation

  • Usha Devi Raman & Shishi Kumar Piaralal & Nur Amalina Zulkefli & Yon Rosli Daud & Sazrin Mohd Mohtar & Ahmad Aiman Dahakim, 2025. "Sustainable Energy Transition among SMEs: Conceptualizing Determinants of Intention to Adopt Solar Energy Technology," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 9(9), pages 8162-8173, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bcp:journl:v:9:y:2025:issue-9:p:8162-8173
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/Digital-Library/volume-9-issue-9/8162-8173.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/articles/sustainable-energy-transition-among-smes-conceptualizing-determinants-of-intention-to-adopt-solar-energy-technology/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Druckman, A. & Jackson, T., 2008. "Household energy consumption in the UK: A highly geographically and socio-economically disaggregated model," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(8), pages 3167-3182, August.
    2. Arfan Shahzad & Mohd Syarol Azuan bin Zakaria & Herbert Kotzab & Muhammad Abdul Majid Makki & Aamir Hussain & Julia Fischer, 2023. "Adoption of fourth industrial revolution 4.0 among Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs)," Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-14, December.
    3. repec:hal:journl:hal-04478933 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Lau, Lin-Sea & Choong, Yuen-Onn & Wei, Chooi-Yi & Seow, Ai-Na & Choong, Chee-Keong & Senadjki, Abdelhak & Ching, Suet-Ling, 2020. "Investigating nonusers’ behavioural intention towards solar photovoltaic technology in Malaysia: The role of knowledge transmission and price value," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    5. Lin, Hsiu-Fen, 2014. "Understanding the determinants of electronic supply chain management system adoption: Using the technology–organization–environment framework," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 80-92.
    6. Wan Syakirah Wan Abdullah & Miszaina Osman & Mohd Zainal Abidin Ab Kadir & Renuga Verayiah, 2019. "The Potential and Status of Renewable Energy Development in Malaysia," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-16, June.
    7. Elahi, Ehsan & Khalid, Zainab & Zhang, Zhixin, 2022. "Understanding farmers’ intention and willingness to install renewable energy technology: A solution to reduce the environmental emissions of agriculture," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 309(C).
    8. Fleiß, Eva & Hatzl, Stefanie & Rauscher, Jürgen, 2024. "Smart energy technology: A survey of adoption by individuals and the enabling potential of the technologies," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    9. Harkaran Kava & Konstantina Spanaki & Thanos Papadopoulos & Stella Despoudi & Oscar Rodriguez-Espindola & Masoud Fakhimi, 2024. "Data analytics diffusion in the UK renewable energy sector: an innovation perspective," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 333(2), pages 717-742, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Ganlin Pu & Md. Qamruzzaman & Ahmed Muneeb Mehta & Farah Naz Naqvi & Salma Karim, 2021. "Innovative Finance, Technological Adaptation and SMEs Sustainability: The Mediating Role of Government Support during COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-27, August.
    2. Hache, Emmanuel & Leboullenger, Déborah & Mignon, Valérie, 2017. "Beyond average energy consumption in the French residential housing market: A household classification approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 82-95.
    3. Zhaoxue Gai & Ying Xu & Guoming Du, 2023. "Spatio-Temporal Differentiation and Driving Factors of Carbon Storage in Cultivated Land-Use Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-16, February.
    4. Shafini M. Shafie & A. H. Nu’man, 2024. "Energy Storage Integration for Renewable Energy Supply in Malaysia: A Review," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 14(5), pages 242-250, September.
    5. Małgorzata Sztorc, 2022. "The Implementation of the European Green Deal Strategy as a Challenge for Energy Management in the Face of the COVID-19 Pandemic," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-21, April.
    6. Allwood, Julian M. & Ashby, Michael F. & Gutowski, Timothy G. & Worrell, Ernst, 2011. "Material efficiency: A white paper," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 362-381.
    7. Lirong Xing & Xiaomiao Yin & Chuanxiang Cao & Ehsan Elahi & Taoyuan Wei, 2022. "The Impact of Multidimensional Distance on Agricultural Exports: Evidence from China Based on the Technological Added Value," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-17, December.
    8. Chaudhuri, Ranjan & Singh, Bindu & Agrawal, Amit Kumar & Chatterjee, Sheshadri & Gupta, Shivam & Mangla, Sachin Kumar, 2024. "A TOE-DCV approach to green supply chain adoption for sustainable operations in the semiconductor industry," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).
    9. Saunders, R.W. & Gross, R.J.K. & Wade, J., 2012. "Can premium tariffs for micro-generation and small scale renewable heat help the fuel poor, and if so, how? Case studies of innovative finance for community energy schemes in the UK," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 78-88.
    10. Ding, Liping & Zhu, Yuxuan & Zheng, Longwei & Dai, Qiyao & Zhang, Zumeng, 2023. "What is the path of photovoltaic building (BIPV or BAPV) promotion? --The perspective of evolutionary games," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    11. Chitnis, Mona & Sorrell, Steve & Druckman, Angela & Firth, Steven K. & Jackson, Tim, 2014. "Who rebounds most? Estimating direct and indirect rebound effects for different UK socioeconomic groups," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 12-32.
    12. Junpeng Li & Wanglin Ma, 2025. "Alleviating Multidimensional Energy Poverty and Energy Unaffordability in Rural Areas: The Role of Renting-Out Land," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 178(1), pages 465-497, May.
    13. Wei Zheng & Hongliang Qiu & Alastair M. Morrison, 2023. "Applying a Combination of SEM and fsQCA to Predict Tourist Resource-Saving Behavioral Intentions in Rural Tourism: An Extension of the Theory of Planned Behavior," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(2), pages 1-23, January.
    14. Ma, Jun & Cheng, Jack C.P., 2016. "Identifying the influential features on the regional energy use intensity of residential buildings based on Random Forests," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 193-201.
    15. Janina Jędrzejczak-Gas & Joanna Wyrwa & Anetta Barska, 2024. "Sustainable Energy Development and Sustainable Economic Development in EU Countries," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-20, April.
    16. Guo, P. & Lam, J. & Li, V., 2018. "A novel machine learning approach for identifying the drivers of domestic electricity users price responsiveness," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 1844, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    17. Li, Xiang & Chen, Beizi & Liu, Haijun & Xu, Mengqi & Yang, Haijun, 2025. "Characteristics of agricultural carbon emissions in arid zones, drivers and decoupling effects: evidence from Xinjiang, China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 328(C).
    18. Kupeli, Birgul & Salman, Gulberk Gultekin & Karaosmanoglu, Elif & Daim, Tugrul, 2024. "Exploring self-service technology adoption: Case of airline check in," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    19. Chitnis, Mona & Sorrell, Steve, 2015. "Living up to expectations: Estimating direct and indirect rebound effects for UK households," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(S1), pages 100-116.
    20. Kong, Karen Gah Hie & How, Bing Shen & Lim, Juin Yau & Leong, Wei Dong & Teng, Sin Yong & Ng, Wendy Pei Qin & Moser, Irene & Sunarso, Jaka, 2022. "Shaving electric bills with renewables? A multi-period pinch-based methodology for energy planning," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 239(PD).

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bcp:journl:v:9:y:2025:issue-9:p:8162-8173. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Dr. Pawan Verma (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.