Two souls are dwelling in my breast: Uncovering how individuals in their dual role as consumer-citizen perceive future energy policies

Abstract

The future of energy depends on present decision-making, and present decision-making depends on assumptions about future effects of energy policy. Individuals have two roles in this: In their citizen-role they have to consent to measures and support their implementation, in their consumer-role they have to adopt and implement measures in their behaviour. Our question is, how distinct these roles are with regard to how they inform individuals' perceptions and concerns related to energy policy options. By applying the "Futures Wheel" method we explored how individuals think future energy policy measures would impact their lives (consumer-perspective). By asking them whether and for what reasons in a voting they would say "yes" or "no" to them we inquired into their assessment of these measures from a citizens' perspective. Our results show that the two roles consumer and citizen trigger different patterns of thinking. Energy policy design and decision-making should consider both. Life quality and justice are important for individuals in both roles. The "Futures Wheel" method helps uncovering assumptions about the future individuals are unaware of and is a suitable method to explore anticipated effects of energy policy options. It might be useful to facilitate societal debate about the future of energy.

“These Grandmas Drove Me Mad. It Was Brilliant!”—Promising Starting Points to Support Citizen Competence for Sustainable Consumption in Adults

“…The existence and importance of these two roles is widely accepted in the scholarly literature, but it is often neglected in policy design (this is pointed out, for instance, by Berglund and Matti [11] and by Spaargaren and Osterveer [12]). Our research shows that individuals display markedly different patterns of thinking, patterns of arguing, and concerns, depending on whether they are addressed as a consumer or as a citizen [13].…”

“…EdIn was embedded in an empirical design that was larger in scope and sample than EdIn and consisted of two rounds of seminarrative (individual) interviews with 48 respondents, one round before and one after EdIn. The aim of these interviews was to uncover how individuals perceive (future) energy policy measures in their role as consumers and in their role as citizens (for more details and the results, see Reference [13]).…”

“…However, several scholars point out the importance of issues of human well-being with regard to assessing policy options and with regard to policy support and conclude that a discussion on quality of life might be a possible starting point to tackle change toward sustainable consumption (e.g., [21,46]). Our own research [13] shows, firstly, that how energy policy measures impact on human well-being and social justice is crucial to both the consumer perspective and the citizen perspective. With regard to environmental issues, it shows, secondly, that although people do not attach much importance to natural resources from a consumer perspective, environmental protection as an outcome of energy policy measures seems to be important to people from a citizen perspective.…”

It is never too late to give up, or is it? Revisiting policies for sustainable consumption

“…Therefore top-down action is considered imperative to give guidance and support to community initiatives pro-social cooperation (Berglund and Matti, 2006). In the right circumstances, top-down action could then also be supported by consumers themselves (Defila et al, 2018).…”

Why only strong sustainable consumption governance will make a difference

“…The consumption corridors concept starts from the assumption that the purpose of consumption is to enable individuals to live a good life that meets their needs, rather than promoting growth or absorbing surplus production (Di Giulio et al, 2012). The focus here is on 'objective' or 'protected' needs, those fundamental needs that are associated with being human and opportunities for living a good life (Defila et al, 2018). Furthermore, following an anthropological approach, the concept of consumption corridors assumes that humans have universal needs that are independent of cultural contexts.…”