IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v140y2020ics0301421520301774.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Split incentive effects on the adoption of technical and behavioral energy-saving measures in the household sector in Western Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Nie, Hongguang
  • Kemp, René
  • Xu, Jin-Hua
  • Vasseur, Véronique
  • Fan, Ying

Abstract

Significant differences in the adoption of energy-saving measures between homeowners and renters were found in the survey data of 1,248 households from the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium. In this study, we examined the influence of split incentive effects between homeowners and renters, which stem from differences between those who pay and those who enjoy the benefits of the adoption of energy-efficient (EE) technology and energy-saving behaviors. Average marginal effects were used to measure the magnitude of the “split incentive” effect by considering many EE technologies and energy-saving behaviors. Both split incentive effects were measured and compared for the first time, producing some interesting results. There is clear evidence of split incentive problems for both measures, and on average, homeowners were found to be16.08% more likely than renters to have access to adoptable EE technologies, while the effects were much smaller (only 4.28%) for adopting behavioral measures. The results were highly robust for household characteristics and specific psychological determinants, such as willingness-to-pay and environmental beliefs. Policy implications are provided to address the split incentive problems in rental markets in household sectors, based on our results.

Suggested Citation

  • Nie, Hongguang & Kemp, René & Xu, Jin-Hua & Vasseur, Véronique & Fan, Ying, 2020. "Split incentive effects on the adoption of technical and behavioral energy-saving measures in the household sector in Western Europe," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:140:y:2020:i:c:s0301421520301774
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2020.111424
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421520301774
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2020.111424?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wang, Zhaohua & Zhang, Bin & Yin, Jianhua & Zhang, Yixiang, 2011. "Determinants and policy implications for household electricity-saving behaviour: Evidence from Beijing, China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 3550-3557, June.
    2. Todd D. Gerarden & Richard G. Newell & Robert N. Stavins, 2017. "Assessing the Energy-Efficiency Gap," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(4), pages 1486-1525, December.
    3. Irfan, Muhammad & Cameron, Michael P. & Hassan, Gazi, 2018. "Household energy elasticities and policy implications for Pakistan," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 633-642.
    4. Qiu, Yueming & Colson, Gregory & Grebitus, Carola, 2014. "Risk preferences and purchase of energy-efficient technologies in the residential sector," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 216-229.
    5. Yohanis, Yigzaw Goshu, 2012. "Domestic energy use and householders' energy behaviour," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 654-665.
    6. Jensen, Michael C. & Meckling, William H., 1976. "Theory of the firm: Managerial behavior, agency costs and ownership structure," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 3(4), pages 305-360, October.
    7. Jia, Jun-Jun & Xu, Jin-Hua & Fan, Ying, 2018. "Public acceptance of household energy-saving measures in Beijing: Heterogeneous preferences and policy implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 487-499.
    8. Yue, Ting & Long, Ruyin & Chen, Hong, 2013. "Factors influencing energy-saving behavior of urban households in Jiangsu Province," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 665-675.
    9. Schleich, Joachim & Gassmann, Xavier & Meissner, Thomas & Faure, Corinne, 2019. "A large-scale test of the effects of time discounting, risk aversion, loss aversion, and present bias on household adoption of energy-efficient technologies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 377-393.
    10. Lucas W. Davis, 2011. "Evaluating the Slow Adoption of Energy Efficient Investments: Are Renters Less Likely to Have Energy Efficient Appliances?," NBER Chapters, in: The Design and Implementation of US Climate Policy, pages 301-316, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Hunt Allcott & Michael Greenstone, 2012. "Is There an Energy Efficiency Gap?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 26(1), pages 3-28, Winter.
    12. Banfi, Silvia & Farsi, Mehdi & Filippini, Massimo & Jakob, Martin, 2008. "Willingness to pay for energy-saving measures in residential buildings," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 503-516, March.
    13. Maruejols, Lucie & Young, Denise, 2011. "Split incentives and energy efficiency in Canadian multi-family dwellings," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 3655-3668, June.
    14. Enongene, K.E. & Murray, P. & Holland, J. & Abanda, F.H., 2017. "Energy savings and economic benefits of transition towards efficient lighting in residential buildings in Cameroon," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 731-742.
    15. Levinson, Arik & Niemann, Scott, 2004. "Energy use by apartment tenants when landlords pay for utilities," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 51-75, March.
    16. Wright, Peter & Mukherji, Ananda & Kroll, Mark J., 2001. "A reexamination of agency theory assumptions: extensions and extrapolations," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 413-429.
    17. Melvin, Jesse, 2018. "The split incentives energy efficiency problem: Evidence of underinvestment by landlords," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 342-352.
    18. Chandra Kiran B. Krishnamurthy and Bengt Kriström, 2015. "How large is the Owner-Renter Divide in Energy Efficient Technology? Evidence from an OECD cross-section," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 4).
    19. Swan, Lukas G. & Ugursal, V. Ismet, 2009. "Modeling of end-use energy consumption in the residential sector: A review of modeling techniques," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(8), pages 1819-1835, October.
    20. Sandler, Ryan, 2018. "You can't take it with you: Appliance choices and the energy efficiency gap," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 327-344.
    21. Kenneth Gillingham, Matthew Harding, and David Rapson, 2012. "Split Incentives in Residential Energy Consumption," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 2).
    22. Guo, Fei & Akenji, Lewis & Schroeder, Patrick & Bengtsson, Magnus, 2018. "Static analysis of technical and economic energy-saving potential in the residential sector of Xiamen city," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 373-383.
    23. Dianshu, Feng & Sovacool, Benjamin K. & Minh Vu, Khuong, 2010. "The barriers to energy efficiency in China: Assessing household electricity savings and consumer behavior in Liaoning Province," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 1202-1209, February.
    24. Schleich, Joachim, 2019. "Energy efficient technology adoption in low-income households in the European Union – What is the evidence?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 196-206.
    25. Burfurd, Ingrid & Gangadharan, Lata & Nemes, Veronika, 2012. "Stars and standards: Energy efficiency in rental markets," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 153-168.
    26. Hunt Allcott & Todd Rogers, 2014. "The Short-Run and Long-Run Effects of Behavioral Interventions: Experimental Evidence from Energy Conservation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(10), pages 3003-3037, October.
    27. Qiu, Yueming & Kahn, Matthew E., 2019. "Impact of voluntary green certification on building energy performance," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 461-475.
    28. Im, Jongho & Seo, Youngme & Cetin, Kristen S. & Singh, Jasmeet, 2017. "Energy efficiency in U.S. residential rental housing: Adoption rates and impact on rent," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 1021-1033.
    29. Thøgersen, John & Grønhøj, Alice, 2010. "Electricity saving in households--A social cognitive approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 7732-7743, December.
    30. Saidur, R. & Masjuki, H.H. & Jamaluddin, M.Y., 2007. "An application of energy and exergy analysis in residential sector of Malaysia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 1050-1063, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Best, Rohan & Burke, Paul J., 2022. "Effects of renting on household energy expenditure: Evidence from Australia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    2. Petrov, Ivan & Ryan, Lisa, 2021. "The landlord-tenant problem and energy efficiency in the residential rental market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    3. Cheng, Xiu & Wu, Fan & Long, Ruyin & Li, Wenbo, 2021. "Uncovering the effects of learning capacity and social interaction on the experienced utility of low-carbon lifestyle guiding policies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    4. Singhal, Puja & Sommer, Stephan & Kaestner, Kathrin & Pahle, Michael, 2023. "Split-incentives in energy efficiency investments? Evidence from rental housing," Ruhr Economic Papers 992, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    5. Frilingou, Natasha & Koasidis, Konstantinos & Spyridaki, Niki-Artemis & Nikas, Alexandros & Marinakis, Vangelis & Doukas, Haris, 2024. "Is it feasible to implement minimum energy performance standards (MEPS) for existing buildings in Greece? A cost-benefit evaluation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    6. Emily K. Schwartz & Moncef Krarti, 2022. "Review of Adoption Status of Sustainable Energy Technologies in the US Residential Building Sector," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-18, March.
    7. Holt, Emily G. & Sunter, Deborah A., 2024. "National disparities in residential energy tax credits in the United States," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 300(C).
    8. Cheng, Xiu & Long, Ruyin & Wu, Fan & Geng, Jichao & Yang, Jiameng, 2023. "How social interaction shapes habitual and occasional low-carbon consumption behaviors: Evidence from ten cities in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 182(C).
    9. Zhongyang Ji & Huiru Yu & Jingyi Zhu & Jiwen Li, 2022. "The Influence of Roadmap for China Phasing Out Incandescent Lamps on the Promotion of Energy-Efficient Lighting Products," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-11, September.
    10. Petkov, Ivalin & Mavromatidis, Georgios & Knoeri, Christof & Allan, James & Hoffmann, Volker H., 2022. "MANGOret: An optimization framework for the long-term investment planning of building multi-energy system and envelope retrofits," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 314(C).
    11. Kuang, Biao & Shi, Yangming & Hu, Yuqing & Zeng, Zhaoyun & Chen, Jianli, 2024. "Household energy resilience in extreme weather events: An investigation of energy service importance, HVAC usage behaviors, and willingness to pay," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 363(C).
    12. Yang, Zhenbing & Hao, Chunyan & Shao, Shuai & Chen, Zhuo & Yang, Lili, 2022. "Appropriate technology and energy security: From the perspective of biased technological change," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).

    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. Fischbacher, Urs & Schudy, Simeon & Teyssier, Sabrina, 2021. "Heterogeneous preferences and investments in energy saving measures," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    2. Petrov, Ivan & Ryan, Lisa, 2021. "The landlord-tenant problem and energy efficiency in the residential rental market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    3. Giraudet, Louis-Gaëtan, 2020. "Energy efficiency as a credence good: A review of informational barriers to energy savings in the building sector," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    4. Ramos, A. & Gago, A. & Labandeira, X. & Linares, P., 2015. "The role of information for energy efficiency in the residential sector," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(S1), pages 17-29.
    5. Louis-Gaëtan Giraudet, 2018. "Energy efficiency as a credence good: A review of informational barriers to building energy savings," Working Papers 2018.07, FAERE - French Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.
    6. Chaudhuri, Kausik & Huaccha, Gissell, 2023. "Who bears the energy cost? Local income deprivation and the household energy efficiency gap," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(PA).
    7. Todd D. Gerarden & Richard G. Newell & Robert N. Stavins, 2017. "Assessing the Energy-Efficiency Gap," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(4), pages 1486-1525, December.
    8. Faure, Corinne & Schleich, Joachim, 2020. "Poor energy ratings when appliances convey?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    9. Cattaneo, Cristina, 2018. "Internal and External Barriers to Energy Efficiency: Made-to-Measure Policy Interventions," CSI: Climate and Sustainable Innovation 269536, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    10. Kiran Krishnamurthy, Chandra & Kriström, Bengt, 2013. "How large is the Owner-Renter Divide? Evidence from an OECD cross-section," CERE Working Papers 2013:8, CERE - the Center for Environmental and Resource Economics.
    11. Hector H. Sandoval & Pedro I. Hancevic, 2023. "Split Incentives in Emerging Countries," Working Papers 242, Red Nacional de Investigadores en Economía (RedNIE).
    12. Lang, Ghislaine & Lanz, Bruno, 2021. "Energy efficiency, information, and the acceptability of rent increases: A survey experiment with tenants," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    13. Camara, N’Famory & Xu, Deyi & Binyet, Emmanuel, 2018. "Enhancing household energy consumption: How should it be done?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 669-681.
    14. Bishop, Kelly C. & Kiribrahim-Sarikaya, Ozgen, 2024. "Energy-efficient investments in housing," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    15. Spandagos, Constantine & Baark, Erik & Ng, Tze Ling & Yarime, Masaru, 2021. "Social influence and economic intervention policies to save energy at home: Critical questions for the new decade and evidence from air-condition use," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    16. Cattaneo, Cristina, 2018. "Internal and External Barriers to Energy Efficiency: Made-to-Measure Policy Interventions," CSI: Climate and Sustainable Innovation 269536, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    17. Cellini, Stefano, 2021. "Split incentives and endogenous inattention in home retrofits uptake: a story of selection on unobservables?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    18. Ángeles Longarela-Ares & Anxo Calvo-Silvosa & José-Benito Pérez-López, 2020. "The Influence of Economic Barriers and Drivers on Energy Efficiency Investments in Maritime Shipping, from the Perspective of the Principal-Agent Problem," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-42, September.
    19. Chandra Kiran B. Krishnamurthy and Bengt Kriström, 2015. "How large is the Owner-Renter Divide in Energy Efficient Technology? Evidence from an OECD cross-section," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 4).
    20. Fanghella, Valeria & Guetlein, Marie-Charlotte & Schleich, Joachim & Sebi, Carine, 2023. "Preferences on financing mechanisms for thermal retrofit measures in multi-owner buildings: A discrete choice experiment with landlords and owner-occupiers in France," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).

    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:eee:enepol:v:140:y:2020:i:c:s0301421520301774. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol .

    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.