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Conscientious vs. ambivalent consumers: Do concerns about energy availability and climate change influence consumer behaviour?

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  • Wicker, Pamela
  • Becken, Susanne

Abstract

Energy availability and climate change are interrelated concerns with economic components. They need to be addressed by policy makers and they require changes in energy consumption. This study examines whether concerns about energy availability and climate change influence consumer behaviour, policy perceptions, and beliefs about future energy consumption. This question is investigated by analysing data from the Eurobarometer 75.4, a comprehensive survey of citizens from all countries of the European Union that was conducted in June 2011 (n=26,840). The regression results show that people concerned about climate change were significantly more likely to take action to mitigate climate change, and to be more favourably disposed towards energy policies and future changes in energy consumption, than people who were not concerned about climate change. On the other hand, people who were concerned about energy availability undertook fewer actions and neither supported energy policies nor believed in future changes in energy consumption. This surprising finding raises questions regarding the adequate communication of energy availability and policies to the public in the European Union.

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  • Wicker, Pamela & Becken, Susanne, 2013. "Conscientious vs. ambivalent consumers: Do concerns about energy availability and climate change influence consumer behaviour?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 41-48.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:88:y:2013:i:c:p:41-48
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2013.01.005
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    9. Raya Muttarak & Thanyaporn Chankrajang, 2015. "Who is concerned about and takes action on climate change? Gender and education divides among Thais," Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna, vol. 13(1), pages 193-220.
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    13. Litvine, Dorian & Gazull, Laurent & Dabat, Marie-Hélène, 2014. "Assessing the potential demand for biofuel by combining Economics and Psychology: A focus on proximity applied to Jatropha oil in Africa," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 85-95.
    14. Schill, Marie & Godefroit-Winkel, Delphine & Diallo, Mbaye Fall & Barbarossa, Camilla, 2019. "Consumers’ intentions to purchase smart home objects: Do environmental issues matter?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 176-185.
    15. Camelia I. Lungu & Cornelia Dascalu & Chirata Caraini & Erica C. Balea, 2014. "Econometric Approach of the Scenarios regarding the Impact of the Consumer’s Empowerment and Companies’ Responsibility for Environment Sustainability on the Electricity Market Performance," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 16(35), pages 187-187, February.
    16. Ahmad Samim Pouya & Özge Can Niyaz, 2022. "Modeling Turkish Households’ Climate Change-Related Behaviors: Theory of Planned Behavior Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-17, September.
    17. Jan Urban, 2016. "Are we measuring concern about global climate change correctly? Testing a novel measurement approach with the data from 28 countries," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 139(3), pages 397-411, December.
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    21. Zhou, Kaile & Yang, Shanlin, 2016. "Understanding household energy consumption behavior: The contribution of energy big data analytics," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 810-819.
    22. Lasarov, Wassili & Mai, Robert & Krause, Jan S. & Schmidt, Ulrich & Hoffmann, Stefan, 2021. "Too Cold to be Skeptical: How Ambient Temperature Moderates the Effects of CSR Communication," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
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