From rational to relational: How energy poor households engage with the British retail energy market

Ambrosio-Albalá, Pepa; Middlemiss, Lucie; Owen, Anne; Hargreaves, Tom; Emmel, Nick; Gilbertson, Janet; Tod, Angela; Snell, Carolyn; Mullen, Caroline; Longhurst, Noel; Gillard, Ross

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2020.101765

Cited by 31 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…This finding supports other evidence on the lived experience of energy poverty which shows that emotions play a part in shaping energy vulnerability, with factors such as stigma, embarrassment and trust either facilitating or preventing the receipt of support for energy vulnerable households (Longhurst and Hargreaves, 2019). Other recent research has demonstrated that the way people interact with the energy market is relational and influenced by their relationships with friends, families, intermediaries, and energy companies themselves (Middlemiss et al, 2019;Ambrosio-Albala, 2020). Our study illuminates how relationships and experiences can influence and mediate access to the energy market for people with learning disabilities.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Being Warm Being Happy: Understanding factors influencing adults with learning disabilities being warm and well at home with inclusive research

Chapman¹,

Gilbertson²,

Bradley³

et al. 2023

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The aim of the Being Warm Being Happy project was to understand and characterise fuel poverty and energy vulnerability from the perspective of adults with learning disabilities. Undertaken in community settings in South Yorkshire, UK, the study adopted an inclusive research approach, with three members of a self-advocacy organisation who have learning disabilities and/or autism working alongside academics as co-researchers. The study incorporated home temperature and humidity measurements and qualitative individual interviews. Ten households, all of which included an adult with learning disabilities participated in the research. Framework analysis identified four interrelated themes influencing decisions about energy use and payment method. First, energy need varied according to health status. Energy need was also influenced by the size, tenure and age of the participant's home. Second, emotions, attitudes and values, in particular a sense of control impacted upon energy use. Third, knowledge and previous experience could help or hinder participants keeping warm. Factors included prior first-hand experiences of support from self-advocacy organisations, energy companies and local authorities and the influence of parents' views and practices. Finally, concerns about affordability and challenges accessing the energy market also had an important impact on experiences and decisions. The research contributes to the limited evidence base about the nature and experience of fuel poverty amongst adults with learning disabilities highlighting the extent to which the existing energy system puts them at a disadvantage p. 2. Being Warm Being Happy: Understanding factors influencing adults with learning disabilities being warm and well at home: an inclusive research study

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 84%

Being Warm Being Happy: Understanding factors influencing adults with learning disabilities being warm and well at home with inclusive research

Chapman¹,

Gilbertson²,

Bradley³

et al. 2023

PPP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…This might not only a way to harness the local experience, thus truly engaging target individuals in the process of betterment of their conditions, but also a way to further increase their capabilities and optimize their energy-use to fit their specific needs. At the stage of analysis furthermore, the integration of more qualitative methods could complement our quantitative approach to better understand experienced conditions of tenants in relation to energy vulnerability and engagement with IHDs (Ambrosio- Albala et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussion Of Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tackling Energy Poverty Through Behavioral Change: A Pilot Study on Social Comparison Interventions in Social Housing Districts

Caballero

Valle

2021

Front. Sustain. Cities

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Behavioral Economics has in recent years played a key role in informing the design of non-price interventions aimed at promoting energy conservation behaviors in residential housing. Some of the most influential contributions of the discipline in an applied setting have centered around the development of norm-based interventions. The success that these interventions have had in specific contexts presents an opportunity to exploit them as tools for tackling a prevalent type of poverty at the EU level: energy poverty. Recent contributions to the literature highlight the role of inefficient energy behavior as a significant driver of this particular type of poverty, which is characterized by an inability to afford the basic energy services necessary to guarantee a decent standard of living. Therefore, the effectiveness of norm-based interventions in vulnerable populations merits further investigation to determine whether this approach can suitably address the behavioral components of energy poverty by promoting efficient energy consumption and conservation efforts. This study reports on a pilot conducted in an exemplary social housing context (located in Bolzano, Italy) with the aim to assess the effectiveness of social comparison interventions in energy vulnerable groups. Our investigated cohort covers an initial small sample of apartments with a large representatives of elderly individuals and other energy-vulnerable groups. Using a design that combines appeals to injunctive and descriptive norms embedded within In-Home Devices (IHD) in recently retrofitted homes, our objective is to set a basis for the assessment of effectiveness of these types of interventions in social housing populations. Our study seeks to provide useful methodological insights to policy makers on how to effectively design behaviorally informed interventions aimed at tackling energy poverty. Despite the current data limitations, our results do seem to suggest that uniformly applied norm-based interventions may have potentially backfiring effects in small-scale implementations. Therefore, they suggest that attention needs to be paid to household composition and pre-existing levels of consumption, when designing behavior-change interventions in these groups.JEL Classification: C93; D03; D04; D12; D19; D91; Q40.

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“…On the other hand, for some households this results in the prioritisation of an internet connection ahead of other energy services (e.g., hot water), as evidenced amongst young people living in the private rental sector in the UK (Petrova, 2018). Digitalisation can also be a means of reconfiguring the social relations between household members and energy companies, providing a new means for companies to ensure compliance amongst financially disadvantaged households, including the recovery of debt without companies having to go into the home (Ambrosio-Albala et al, 2020). As a result, low-income households often perceive new technologies as intrusive (Sovacool et al, 2021).…”

Section: Financial Exclusion and Affordability Of Assetsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…home ownership) (Powells and Fell, 2019). For example, a lack of internet access is the biggest barrier to households switching supplier (Ambrosio-Albala et al, 2020) and is often an issue in temporary accommodation where communal broadband is poor. Lovell et al (2017) also evidence the underuse of digital meters in Australian low-income households that cannot afford to purchase interactive displays.…”

Section: Financial Exclusion and Affordability Of Assetsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digitalisation without detriment: A research agenda for digital inclusion in the future energy system

Chambers¹,

Robinson²,

Scott³

2023

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It is increasingly recognised that the future energy system will be digitalised, and that end-user engagements with this system will be digitally mediated by smart ICT. The digitalisation of the energy system promises significant benefits, but also risks replicating and entrenching persistent inequalities in the ability of households to access adequate energy services. Focusing on a case study of the United Kingdom, this paper explores the links between energy system digitalisation, digital exclusion, and energy poverty, with the wider aim of sketching out a research agenda for understanding the risks, opportunities, and inequalities latent within the transition to a digitalised energy system. Drawing on a review of relevant literatures, the concept of social relations developed by Hargreaves and Middlemiss (2020), and a thematic analysis of a stakeholder workshop, the paper identifies five areas of focus for further research and analysis: 1) the role of financial exclusion and asset affordability in shaping digital inclusion and exclusion, 2) time and temporality, 3) the role of trust in shaping engagements with digital technologies, 4) language, literacy, and communication, and 5) the uneven impacts of digital exclusion on different social groups. The paper concludes with reflections on the practical challenges and implications of pursuing this agenda.

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From rational to relational: How energy poor households engage with the British retail energy market

Cited by 31 publications

References 38 publications

Being Warm Being Happy: Understanding factors influencing adults with learning disabilities being warm and well at home with inclusive research

Being Warm Being Happy: Understanding factors influencing adults with learning disabilities being warm and well at home with inclusive research

Tackling Energy Poverty Through Behavioral Change: A Pilot Study on Social Comparison Interventions in Social Housing Districts

Digitalisation without detriment: A research agenda for digital inclusion in the future energy system

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