Phoenix Convention Center • Phoenix, Arizona
Behavioral Change to SupportEffective Energy Management
Institutional Change INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE FOR SUSTAINABILITY
Irina Feygina, PhDWhite House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team
August 11, 2015
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade2
• Behavior is key to energy management success
• Energy efficiency in buildings– Anticipated vs actual performance– User experience
• Solar power competitiveness– Technology vs soft costs– Policy, implementation, information
• Innovative technologies– The valley of death– Market adoption processes
Why Behavioral Change?
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade3
• Individuals– Usability, design
• Teams and groups– Communication– Structure and roles
• Organizations and institutions– Markets– Leadership– Vision and goals
Where Does Behavior Change Matter?
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade4
• Identifying where behavior makes a difference– Measuring and understanding behavior
• Aligning behavior with effective energy practice
• Tracking behavior over time– Integrated into ongoing monitoring and assessment
• Aligning design and planning with users needs– Buildings, transportation, procurement
• Improving communication, information flow– Users and managers; leadership
Harnessing the Power of Behavior
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade5
People and Change
• Why do people resist change?• How can we facilitate change?• The important role of human needs
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
How are people affected by change?
– Personal• E.g. Challenge of life transitions
– Community and group• E.g. Organizational change
– Systemic, institutional, ideological• E.g. Soviet Union collapse
– E.g. Climate change• Personal, collective, and systemic aspects of our lives• The role of stability; diverse reactions to change
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Resistance to Change
– Behavioral• Habitual and ingrained behaviors• Patterns and expectations• Fluency and flow
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Resistance to Change
– Behavioral– Cognitive
• What is the most limited human resource?• Attention!• Heuristics• Status quo bias• Dissonance
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Resistance to Change
– Behavioral– Cognitive – Motivational
• Personal, group, and systemic needs • Protection from threat• Ideological: just world, meritocracy
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Resistance to Change
– Behavioral– Cognitive – Motivational– Individual difference
• Need for certainty• Need for control
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Desire and Support for Change
– Growth and development
– Values and norms• Progress• Identity
– Individual difference• Need for openness and experience
– Goal setting and pursuit• Management of goal conflict
– System change
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information– Knowledge and understanding are important– Lack of knowledge about energy use is problematic
• Advanced Metering• Energy use feedback: Immediate and noticeable• Food waste measurement
– But often information is not enough to bring about behavior change
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values
– Important, but don’t always lead to behaviors– Barriers prevent implementation– Behavioral intentions
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values • Needs and motives
– Work with underlying needs and priorities, not against– What is the most powerful human motive?
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values • Needs and motives • Social norms, identities, institutions
– The need to belong is paramount, harness it!– Leadership and institutional level norms
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values • Needs and motives• Social norms, identities, institutions • Morals
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values • Needs and motives• Social norms, identities, institutions • Morals• Narratives and stories
– Psychological proximity• Personal accounts• Films
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Change
• Information• Attitudes and values • Needs and motives• Social norms, identities, institutions • Morals• Narratives and stories• Role of context
– Decision making is not a rational process– Cognitive biases and heuristics– Peripheral, contextual factors– Presentation and framing of choices
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Insights: EAST
• Easy: Make it easy for people to achieve their goals
– The power of defaults– Simplify the process– Make it convenient
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Insights: EAST
• Easy: Make it easy for people to achieve their goals• Attractive: Draw people’s attention to your messages
– Novel; Surprising– Salient; Noticeable– Relevant; Interesting– Visually appealing
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Insights: EAST
• Easy: Make it easy for people to achieve their goals• Attractive: Draw people’s attention to your messages• Social: Motivate people through others’ behaviors
– Social norms– Reciprocity– Cooperation – Reputation
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Behavioral Insights: EAST
• Easy: Make it easy for people to achieve their goals• Attractive: Draw people’s attention to your messages• Social: Motivate people through others’ behaviors• Timely: Make things timely and relevant at key
decision points– Provide information when needed– Target points of action
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
In Sum
• Identify where behavior change is needed for successful energy management– Measurement and tracking, feedback
• Understand reasons for behavior, barriers to change
• To support behavioral change, focus on:– Needs, motives, and goals
– Social norms and identities
– Systems and institutional processes
– Behavioral context (easy, attractive, timely)
• Pilot test your interventions, assess, update
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Example: Energy Efficiency in Buildings
• DOE Energy Efficiency Building Hub
• Lighting and HVAC retrofits – Commercial buildings
• Integrating consideration of building occupants
• Key questions:– How are occupants responding?
– What do they want and need?
– Is the new environment satisfactory?
– Are people undermining the energy efficiency of the building?
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Building Occupant Experience
• Service reduction experiments – Load sheds in preparation for utility demand-response
• Design– Baseline and follow-up surveys; daily surveys– 6 load shed interventions (75.4F to 78F)
• Outcomes– Satisfaction with building environment– Satisfaction with ability to adjust/control environment– Mental and physical health– Productivity and satisfaction with work
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Satisfaction with Environment
Air Temperature Light Privacy Environment (overall)
Job0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Satisfaction: 1 = Very Dissatisfied to 7 = Very Satisfied
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Ability to Control Environment
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7Is It Easy to Adjust?
Ave
rage
Agr
eem
ent
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Ability to Control Environment
1 = Very Strongly Disagree
2 3 4 5 6 7 = Very Strongly Agree
0%
4%
8%
12%
16%
20%
It is easy to figure out how the HVAC systems work in order to adjust them.
Perc
ent o
f Par
ticip
ants
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Ability to Control Environment
• Undermining energy efficiency of building– Heaters (sometimes two)– Blocking vents
• Despite enforced ban on personal appliances
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade31
Significant increases in:
• Satisfaction with environmental conditions– Temperature
• Satisfaction with ability to adjust environment– Adjust temperature
• Mental and physical health– Feel more pleasant– Report less fatigue– Experience greater mental health
• Work satisfaction– Higher work quality– Greater productivity
Effects of Service Reduction
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Effects of Service Reduction
• At baseline, we asked participants to compare actual temperature to their desired temperature
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Plots of differences in
respondents’ perceptions of
typical and ideal workspace
temperature conditions
Effects of Service Reduction
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Effects of Service Reduction
Baseline Control Days Service Reduction
Days
Follow-Up0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Too Cold (N = 15)Just Right (N = 12)Too Hot (N = 11)
Satis
facti
on w
ith T
empe
ratu
re
Cold people became more satisfied during service reduction; others stayed unchanged.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Lessons Learned
• Post-occupancy evaluations are imperative
• People’s experiences matter for energy efficiency– Integrate into design and planning– Develop best practices for industry
• Better understanding of user experience can lead to savings and effectiveness of retrofits
• The role of control over one’s environment
• Connection between users and building managers
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade36
• How to get people to reuse towels in a hotel?
• Signs typically focus on environmental benefit:
HELP SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT. You can show your respect for nature and help save the environment by reusing your towels during your stay.
Example: Reducing Energy and Water Use
Goldstein, N. J., Cialdini, R. B., and Griskevicius, V. (2008). A Room with a Viewpoint: Using Social Norms to Motivate Environmental Conservation in Hotels. Journal of Consumer Research, 35, 472-482.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade37
• People align behavior to social norms– Descriptive norms suggest effective, adaptive, and
appropriate behavior in specific situations:
JOIN YOUR FELLOW GUESTS IN HELPING TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT. Almost 75% of guests who are asked to participate in our new resource savings program do help by using their towels more than once. You can join your fellow guests in this program to help save the environment by reusing your towels during your stay.
– Resulted in significantly greater reuse of towels• Standard message: 35.1% vs. Descriptive norm: 44.1%
Social Norms
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade38
• Provincial norms – Local setting and circumstances– Should be more influential than global norms
JOIN YOUR FELLOW GUESTS IN HELPING TO SAVE THE ENVIRONMENT. In a study conducted in Fall 2003, 75% of the guests who stayed in this room (#313) participated in our new resource savings program by using their towels more than once. You can join your fellow guests in this program to help save the environment by reusing your towels during your stay.
– Resulted in greatest reuse of towels• Standard message: 35.1% vs. Provincial norm: 49.3%
Social Norms
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade39
• Opower reports:– Compare energy usage to neighbors with similarly
sized houses
– Targeted tips to motivate lower energy consumption in line with the "normal" neighborhood rate
– Smiley-face emoticons for energy-efficient homes• Prevent most efficient consumers from increasing energy
use once know the norm
– Deliver 2.1 to 3.5% reductions in energy use
Social Norms: Application
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade40
• Hotel practices– Many don’t switch despite evidence– Need explicit organization support
• Hotel staff wash hanging towels– Fear of dissatisfaction– Lack of understanding
– Change default institutional practice• Washing towels every three days; Linens weekly• Develop a new status-quo• Opt out rather than opt in
Social Norms: Application
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade41
• Juneau, Alaska
• Hydroelectric power
• Line from Snettisham reservoir cut off by avalanche
• 10% energy use reductions in anticipation of higher prices
• Needed much higher savings
Integrated Strategy
Meier, A. (2010). A 30% Reduction in Electricity Use Is Not Only Possible but Actually Occurred in Juneau, Alaska. People-Centered Initiatives for Increasing Energy Savings, ACEEE.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade42
• Community Engagement:• Institutions, leadership, norms, identity
– Juneau Economic Development Council (JEDC)
– City leaders: Merchants, heads of nonprofits, church elders, politicians, school representatives
– Elected officials and politicians
– Stores placed logo in windows
– Businesses participate in energy reductions
– Changes to city infrastructure
Integrated Strategy
Meier, A. (2010). A 30% Reduction in Electricity Use Is Not Only Possible but Actually Occurred in Juneau, Alaska. People-Centered Initiatives for Increasing Energy Savings, ACEEE.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade43
• Community Engagement:• Information
– Information about effective energy reduction strategies and actions; Safety
– Single message and unified voice
– Positive and upbeat message
– Humorous story-telling
– Radio, word of mouth, and newspapers
– Feedback from utilities
Integrated Strategy
Meier, A. (2010). A 30% Reduction in Electricity Use Is Not Only Possible but Actually Occurred in Juneau, Alaska. People-Centered Initiatives for Increasing Energy Savings, ACEEE.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade44
• Results– 30% reduction in
energy use
• Longer-term impacts– 10% reduction in
energy use for remainder of year
Integrated Strategy
Meier, A. (2010). A 30% Reduction in Electricity Use Is Not Only Possible but Actually Occurred in Juneau, Alaska. People-Centered Initiatives for Increasing Energy Savings, ACEEE.
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade45
• Important part of energy management
• Behavior change to increase energy savings
• Understand and work with the user – Personal experiences and needs – Social realities
Conclusion: Behavior
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade46
• Interconnection between individual and institutional processes– Institutional context shapes behavior– Behavior needs to align with institutional success
• Effective change requires working at individual and organizational levels– Institutional change efforts depend on understanding and
incorporating user needs– Behavioral change most likely in time of transition and
organizational change
Conclusion: Individuals and Institutions
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade47
• Learning about user experience is essential – Post-occupancy and during design
• Pilot testing intervention prior to adoption
• Ongoing evaluation and monitoring
• Evidence of successes and shortcomings– Inform future planning efforts
• Many established tools and methodologies available
Conclusion: Data and Empirical Evidence
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Effects of Load Shedding
• Satisfaction with Environmental Conditions
Paired Samples Test: Control Days minus Shed Days
Paired Differences
Mean Difference Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Air Quality 2.36649 15.32882 2.84649 .831 28 .413
Temperature -8.08440 22.36402 4.15289 -1.947 28 .062
Noise -2.40174 11.19070 2.07806 -1.156 28 .258
Light 1.89238 12.46331 2.31438 .818 28 .420
Scale from 0 = Very Dissatisfied to 100 = Very Satisfied
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Effects of Load Shedding
• Satisfaction with Ability to Adjust Environment
Paired Samples Test: Control Days minus Shed Days
Paired Differences
Mean Difference Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Adjust Light .01944 11.19626 2.07909 .009 28 .993
Adjust Air 2.12152 13.90149 2.67534 .793 26 .435
Adjust Temperature -10.98104 18.75501 3.54436 -3.098 27 .005
Scale from 0 = Very Dissatisfied to 100 = Very Satisfied
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
• Mental and Physical Health
Paired Samples Test: Control Days minus Shed Days
Mean
DifferenceStd. Deviation Std. Error Mean
t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Feel Pleasant -3.53040 7.00178 1.27835 -2.762 29 .010
Feel Alert -3.00590 11.34526 2.07135 -1.451 29 .157
Physical Health -1.98072 10.63891 1.94239 -1.020 29 .316
Mental Health -4.63016 11.73607 2.17933 -2.125 28 .043
Ability to Concentrate -3.54289 19.87472 3.75597 -.943 27 .354
Stress 2.21780 23.55557 4.37416 .507 28 .616
Fatigue -8.36795 20.56702 3.81920 -2.191 28 .037
Scale from 0 = Poor Feelings/Ability/Health to 100 = Great Feelings/Ability/Health
Effects of Load Shedding
Energy Exchange: Federal Sustainability for the Next Decade
Effects of Load Shedding
• Productivity and Satisfaction with Work
Paired Samples Test: Control Days minus Shed Days
Paired Differences
Mean Difference Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean
t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Work Quality -4.55897 8.78635 1.66046 -2.746 27 .011
Productivity -7.12292 10.01136 1.85906 -3.831 28 .001
Job Satisfaction -2.93786 12.76857 2.37106 -1.239 28 .226
Scale from 0 = Very Low/Dissatisfied to 100 = Very High/Satisfied