Several researchers from the ENCHANT project recently published an article, where they present a comprehensive overview “of field experiments utilizing social norms, commitment and price-based interventions to promote energy conservation, load shifting, and energy efficiency behaviors”.

The paper examines various effects reported in the current literature, as well as factors that may strengthen or dampen these effects. Main findings in the paper are that social norms and incentive-based interventions mostly achieve small reductions in energy consumption, but that the effects of commitment-based interventions and incentive effects on energy efficiency investments are mostly non-existent.

The paper identifies one important gap in the literature, namely the almost complete absence of field experiments leveraging social norms or commitment to promote energy efficiency investments.

Moderators of the interventions’ effects that so far has mostly been under-researched are further discussed, pointing to more careful attention to moderators in future research. This review offers a starting point.

For a full view of the paper: Norms, prices, and commitment: A comprehensive overview of field experiments in the energy domain and treatment effect moderators – PMC (nih.gov)

Vesely, S., Klöckner, C. A., Carrus, G., Tiberio, L., Caffaro, F., Biresselioglu, M. E., … & Sinea, A. C. (2022). Norms, prices, and commitment: A comprehensive overview of field experiments in the energy domain and treatment effect moderators. Frontiers in Psychology, 13.