Econ Papers Daily / 期刊论文
通过互动传播工具提高对可再生能源技术成本竞争力的认识——准实验证据
Raising awareness of the cost-competitiveness of renewable energy technologies through interactive communication tools–quasi-experimental evidence
摘要
By adopting renewable energy technologies (RETs) such as renewable heating systems (RHSs) and electric vehicles (EVs), households can contribute to climate change mitigation while simultaneously potentially coping with rising carbon prices. However, the adoption rates for both types of RETs in Germany are still too low. Among other factors, these low rates can be attributed to a lack of awareness of the technologies' cost-competitiveness, which may prevent people from making the investments. A novel approach for raising this awareness lies in the use of interactive communication tools (ICTs), which offer information of the cost-competitiveness and thus the opportunity to promote investments in RETs. This study investigated whether the use of ICTs is associated with a raise of awareness of the cost-competitiveness of RETs. Forms of awareness we investigated were the perception of upfront costs associated with the investments, the perceived scope of action to make the investments, and the perceived financial response efficacy of the investments. Using a pre−/posttest quasi-experimental 2 × 3 design, participants ( N = 859) were assigned to one of two ICTs, with a focus on either RHSs ( n = 400) or EVs ( n = 459). By implementing several hierarchical linear models, we found that using both ICTs was partly associated with a raise in participants' awareness of the cost-competitiveness of the RETs. Additional analyses showed that one of these effects was moderated by participants' income. Our results have practical implications, offering insights into how ICTs can be used to foster households' adoption of RHSs and EVs in Germany.
中文摘要
通过采用可再生能源技术（RETs），例如可再生供暖系统（RHSs）和电动汽车（EVs），家庭可以在为减缓气候变化做出贡献的同时，也有可能应对不断上涨的碳价格。然而，这两类RETs在德国的采用率仍然过低。除其他因素外，这些低采用率可归因于人们对这些技术成本竞争力的认识不足，这可能阻碍人们进行投资。提高这种认识的一种新方法在于使用互动传播工具（ICTs），这些工具提供有关成本竞争力的信息，从而提供促进RETs投资的机会。本研究考察了ICTs的使用是否与对RETs成本竞争力认识的提高相关。我们考察的认识形式包括：对与投资相关的前期成本的感知、对进行这些投资的可行动范围的感知，以及对投资财务响应效能的感知。采用前测/后测准实验2×3设计，参与者（N = 859）被分配到两种ICTs中的一种，分别侧重于RHSs（n = 400）或EVs（n = 459）。通过实施多个分层线性模型，我们发现使用这两种ICTs均与参与者对RETs成本竞争力认识的提高部分相关。进一步分析表明，其中一项效应受到参与者收入的调节。我们的结果具有实践意义，为如何在德国利用ICTs促进家庭采用RHSs和EVs提供了见解。