Effects of Rank-Ordered Feature Perceptions of Energy Sources on the Choice of the Most Acceptable Power Plant for a Neighborhood: An Investigation Using a South Korean Nationwide Sample

Abstract

The present study incorporates a competitive context into an individual’s response to the construction of a power plant in his/her neighborhood and the determinants of this response. The study adopts an individual’s rank-ordered feature perceptions of competing energy sources to reflect the individual’s comparative perceptions of the sources regarding the features, and it investigates the effects of these perceptions on his/her choice of the most acceptable power plant in the area where he/she lives. Our mixed conditional logit analysis of nationwide survey data from South Korea demonstrated the following: among the rank-ordered feature perceptions, the perceptions regarding safety and eco-friendliness significantly predict an individual’s choice of the most acceptable power plant for his/her neighborhood, while those regarding affordability, contribution to economic development, and job creation do not. In addition, among those significant features, safety was found to be a stricter criterion than eco-friendliness. The selective significance of the feature perceptions and the differentiated criteria between the significant features provide practical implications for professionals in energy industries, as well as theoretical implications for researchers.

Exploring Signals for a Nuclear Future Using Social Big Data

“…In other words, Korea is likely to experience an era of nuclear phase-out and select wind energy as an alternative to nuclear power, even though renewable energy sources are perceived by the public as more cost competitive than they really are [30]. The investigation on the public perceptions of energy sources in Korea [31] indicated the same conclusion on the choice of the most acceptable power plant. As time passes and debates on the energy sources are exposed, local acceptance of nuclear power will be plunged due to its unfamiliarity [32], and attention on wind energy will emerge [33].…”