People are not good at making immediate sacrifices for an abstract benefit in the future, especially when they have a hard time understanding the problem....
A study in California showed that when the monthly electric bill listed the average consumption in the neighborhood, the people in above-average households significantly decreased their consumption.Meanwhile, the people with the below-average bills reacted by significantly increasing their consumption — not exactly the goal of the project.
That reaction was avoided when the bill featured a little drawing along with the numbers: a smiling face on a below-average bill or a frowning face on an above-average bill. After that simple nudge, the heavy users made even bigger cuts in consumption, while the light users remained frugal.
read more at the New York Times | digg story
2 comments:
Interesting.
My electricity bill compares the current month to one year previous, total usage, billing days, and average temperature. It also has a twelve month bar graph of usage. It's a good motivator.
I've managed to have a reduction nearly every month compared to the previous year. CF bulbs, laptop instead of desktop computer, more point lighting, power strips and switched outlets to cut down on ghost loads. I think I am approaching the limit without replacing the fridge.
Good for you!
We did without a hot water heater for two months this winter. It cut our bill almost in half... oh my. Now the new one uses half the power of the previous one. We're also now 100% CLFs and LEDS. We're also now putting together the solar hot water pre-heater we;ve been thinking about for years.
Post a Comment