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Energy Poverty among College Students in Japan in a Survey of Students’ Knowledge, Attitude and Practices towards Energy Use

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  • Amin Nazarahari

    (School of Environment and Society, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama 226-8503, Japan)

  • Nader Ghotbi

    (Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies, Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu 874-8577, Japan)

  • Koji Tokimatsu

    (School of Environment and Society, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama 226-8503, Japan)

Abstract

In order to investigate the problem of energy/fuel poverty in Japan, we examined the knowledge, attitude, and practices towards energy usage of a random group of 447 college students in an international university in Japan. The majority of the students were living independently in private or shared accommodations, depended on portable heating/cooling appliances, and were billed directly for their electricity usage. The responses of 205 Japanese and 236 non-Japanese students to a detailed survey about energy consumption for daily living and its cost were collected. The examined variables included students’ monthly income/allowance, energy bills, attributes of energy use including room temperature setting for cooling in summer and heating in winter, the students’ awareness of energy fees, and their attitude towards energy use vs. saving in energy costs. The results indicate that energy bills were perceived as too high by most non-Japanese students as compared to Japanese students, while for both Japanese and non-Japanese students there was a positive correlation between monthly income/allowance and energy bills. The findings suggest that energy poverty is common among college students living independently in Japan, such that, in future research, they may be included in the category of vulnerable households with respect to energy poverty.

Suggested Citation

  • Amin Nazarahari & Nader Ghotbi & Koji Tokimatsu, 2021. "Energy Poverty among College Students in Japan in a Survey of Students’ Knowledge, Attitude and Practices towards Energy Use," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(15), pages 1-17, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:15:p:8484-:d:604198
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    References listed on IDEAS

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