The role of social value in the investment decision in cleaner technology

This paper studies the effect of social value on the investment decision in cleaner technology. Using a theoretical framework where we distinguish conformist and anti-conformist behaviours, we study the consumer's decision to adopt an envi- ronmentally cleaner technology according to his environmental consciousness and according to a social value derives from other individuals respect. Then, using PHE- BUS database, we study the profile of households with a high social value. This paper provides three major contributions. First, this model of social value is use- ful for understanding environmental decisions of investment. Indeed, we show that the weight of social value for consumer signaling his preferences for environment influences the decision to invest. Second, results underline the importance for an economy to understand the consumption profile of individuals. In a conformist soci- ety, information campaigns which stress the importance of environmental attributes would be successful. Third, the empirical analysis lets us to determine a profile of households with a high social value. The results obtained are interesting for policy makers: they should focus information campaigns towards young men with a high environmental consciousness because they are more willing to invest in solar panels.