What do experts talk about when they talk about users? Expectations and imagined users in the smart grid

Throndsen, William

doi:10.1007/s12053-016-9456-5

Cited by 39 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Similar 'preconfiguration' of certain kinds of user in smart-energy industry standards and energy policies has also received attention [21,62,63]. Throndsen [28], reviewing literature on smart grid research papers, argues that preconfigurations of the residential smart-grid user fall within three wide categories: economic configuration (making 'users' more active in an economically rational way); technical configuration (automation of energy consumption and bypassing active forms of use); and social science configuration (comparing visions of imagined users to 'real' users, whoever they may be). Coming to very similar conclusions, a study of Danish smart grid experimentation projects discovered three main 'scripts' that inform the interaction that these projects expect between household consumers and future smart grids: an economic incentives script, an automation script, and an information and visualization script [64].…”

Section: Social Science and Humanities Research On Smartness And Smarmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On different occasions, the smart meter was conceptualized as a tool for economic efficiency, as a democratization project, or as part of a vision of a new machine-governed society, while the necessity of interoperability among the components of the future's smart grid was also flagged [4]. Other works have used the concept of imaginaries to explore how smart grids also produce visions of very different smart grid 'users' [28]. One key expectation has been that individuals' behavioural changes will be triggered by smart technologies such as smart meters, driven by energy and cost savings [23,61].…”

Section: Social Science and Humanities Research On Smartness And Smarmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By studying these uses and users, we also produce a more subtle understanding of how exactly smart energy technologies might contribute to sustainability in energy systems. To these aims, we draw upon and advance a considerable body of STS research on user-technology relationships [18,19] and the technological, social, and policy assumptions and implications of smart grids and meters [20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30]. The article addresses two overarching research questions:…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Who ‘Uses’ Smart Grids? The Evolving Nature of User Representations in Layered Infrastructures

et al. 2018

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This article addresses the anticipated use and users of smart energy technologies and the contribution of these technologies to energy sustainability. It focuses on smart grids and smart energy meters. Qualitative accounts given by European technology developers and experts reveal how they understand the final use and social impacts of these technologies. The article analyzes these accounts and compares the UK’s smart meter rollout with experiences from other European countries, especially Finland, to provide insights into the later adoption stages of smart energy and how its impacts have evolved. The analysis highlights significant differences in the likely intensity and manner of user engagement with smart grids and meters: depending first on whether we are considering existing technologies or smart technologies that are expected to mature sometime in the next decade, and second on whether the ‘user’ is the user of smart meters or the user of an entire layer of new energy services and applications. By deploying the strategic approach developed in the article, smart grid developers and experts can give more explicit attention to recognizing the descriptions of ‘users’ in smart-grid projects and to the feasibility of these expectations of ‘use’ in comparison to the possibilities and limits of energy services and applications in different country contexts. The examination of user representations can also point out the need for further technology and service development if some of the envisioned user profiles and user actions appear unrealistic for presently available technologies.

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Section: Social Science and Humanities Research On Smartness And Smarmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Social Science and Humanities Research On Smartness And Smarmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Who ‘Uses’ Smart Grids? The Evolving Nature of User Representations in Layered Infrastructures

et al. 2018

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“…Thus, utilities could benefit from offering target-group-specific services and communication. Still, for the vast majority of consumers, electricity consumption is a low-interest topic (see Accenture 2010;Throndsen 2017). For them, the services offered have to be simple and associated with the least effort possible.…”

Section: Practical Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acceptance among residential electricity consumers regarding scenarios of a transformed energy system in Switzerland—a focus group study

et al. 2017

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The Swiss energy system will undergo successive restructuring in the next decades as a result of recent decisions in energy policy (Switzerland's Energy Strategy 2050) and the expected second step in the market liberalization process (free choice of provider for small customers). This transformation will probably lead to the following trends: an increasing share of renewable energies, a shift from centralized to distributed generation and the emergence of new players in the energy market. Because of the associated integration of renewables, the grid will increasingly face problems of intermittent loads, the need to integrate smart information and communication technology, and mechanisms for demand-side management. However, these key elements of the future energy system also raise issues concerning social acceptance, as they tend to interfere with basic human needs like autonomy and privacy. Additionally, market liberalization may reshuffle existing customer utility relationships considerably. This focus group study contributes to understanding residential consumers' attitudes and expectations regarding four scenarios of future utility/customer interactions in the Swiss electricity sector (dynamic tariffs, direct load control, energy storage and novel energy services). The findings show that as to acceptance of future scenarios, there are no Bone-fit-for-all^solutions, as the needs of different consumer groups are very diverse. However, the analyses reveal that for acceptance of novel models of interaction, transparent communication and a trusted relationship are crucial. The discussion touches on practical implications for research, policymaking and electric utilities' market strategies.

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“…Studying consumption as an outcome of situated social practices (Hargreaves, ; Shove and Walker, ), these scholars engage critically with the behavioural assumptions inscribed into smart grid systems, such as rational decision‐makers or economically rational individuals. Focusing on smart devices (Burgess and Nye, ; Wallenborn et al ., ), smart grid script (Jenle and Pallesen, ; Throndsen, ) or users (Hargreaves et al ., ; Nyborg and Røpke, ), they offer rich empirical accounts of the apparent gap between the engineers’ design and the actual social practices of users, far removed from the behavioural assumptions of engineers. This gap, however, need not be a void.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Articulation work from the middle—a study of how technicians mediate users and technology

Pallesen¹,

Jacobsen²

2018

New Technol Work Employ

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This article studies the work performed by technicians in a large demonstration project, EcoGrid 2.0, in the Danish island Bornholm. Based on observations of household visits conducted by technicians, we demonstrate how these act as ‘middlemen’, mediating and linking together the smart technology of the demonstration and the involved users. Formally, technicians’ work is to keep users online; however, they also perform a number of invisible tasks to keep users engaged and active. Our ethnographic study shows two broad categories of invisible work: first, technicians continually facilitate the willingness of users, recurrently affirming the social contract between users and demonstration project. Second, technicians facilitate the abilities of users by improvising informal training sessions of how to operate the system. These findings are used to discuss the importance of invisible articulation work of technical service workers in large scale real‐world experiments.

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What do experts talk about when they talk about users? Expectations and imagined users in the smart grid

Cited by 39 publications

References 39 publications

Who ‘Uses’ Smart Grids? The Evolving Nature of User Representations in Layered Infrastructures

Who ‘Uses’ Smart Grids? The Evolving Nature of User Representations in Layered Infrastructures

Acceptance among residential electricity consumers regarding scenarios of a transformed energy system in Switzerland—a focus group study

Articulation work from the middle—a study of how technicians mediate users and technology

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