Energy and Society

Abstract

Energy is a crucial social variable and has sporadically been of interest to sociologists. Recent world events and trends have revived interest and concern. This review traces key themes and arguments in the sociology of energy and critically evaluates the literature. The discussion is organized into four sections: energetic theories of society, macrosociology of energy, microsociology of energy, and energy policy and other special topics. A concluding section assesses the state of the field and speculates on its future directions.

The importance of comprehensiveness in renewable electricity and energy-efficiency policy

“…For most people, the only visible sign of electricity use is at the payment time, when utility bills periodically reach the household (Rosa et al, 1988). Extensive interviews with residential electricity consumers have found more than half of them (55%) pay all of their bills the same time each month.…”

Buildings don't use energy: people do

“…Energy use in buildings has also been considered as a social problem rather than a technological one [2,3]. How societies are motivated to use or conserve energy has been a topic addressed sporadically by social scientists for more than a century [4]. From this perspective, reducing energy use in buildings requires changes in the entire fabric of society.…”

Urban Energy Transitions: Places, Processes and Politics of Socio-technical Change

“…Work in human geography, environmental sociology, political science and science and technology studies (STS) has perhaps addressed more directly some of the links between energy, societal change and their associated socio-political implications, albeit without a specifically urban entry point (for overviews, see Rosa et al, 1988;Guy and Shove, 2000;Mol and Spaargaren, 2006;Haas et al, 2008;Bradshaw, 2010;Bridge, 2010;Schreuer et al, 2010;Cherp et al, 2011;Zimmerer, 2011;Bridge et al, 2013;Foxon et al, 2013). Other more disparate work around energy and urban change adopts a variety of approaches (quantitative/qualitative, utopian/dystopian, sectoral/transversal, policy analysis/theoretical, etc.)…”