The Application of Social Science to Energy Conservation: Realizations, Models, and Findings

Christine Egan

March 2000

Abstract

This report reviews 25 years of literature in the area of human dimensions research on energy efficiency and conservation. Three general categories are used for organizing this work, including: sociological realizations that derive fundamentally from the application of social theory to energy use; models and theories for organizing and predicting behavior; and intervention strategies and programmatic results that are behaviorally based and linked to one or more social science disciplines. Highlights include: many of the realizations are still relevant and oft overlooked by policymakers; no overarching model for consistently predicting behavior has been developed; and there is a rich potential for future exploration of this area of research. Topics as far ranging as the social and cultural context of markets and technology to the continued pursuit of individual behavior and motivation are pursued. In conclusion, the future of human dimensions research depends on interdisciplinary cooperation and the ability of the research community to meld theory and policy pragmatism.

Click to order hard copy.

33 pp., 2000, $13.00, E002