Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid
Smart grids use digital information technology to simultaneously increase energy efficiency while integrating renewables into the electric grid, making it a critical component of achieving a low-carbon energy system. Prior research on the social acceptance of smart grids has relied on either single...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research Letters |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abd81c |
| _version_ | 1797747829687451648 |
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| author | Dylan Bugden Richard Stedman |
| author_facet | Dylan Bugden Richard Stedman |
| author_sort | Dylan Bugden |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Smart grids use digital information technology to simultaneously increase energy efficiency while integrating renewables into the electric grid, making it a critical component of achieving a low-carbon energy system. Prior research on the social acceptance of smart grids has relied on either single time point assessment (i.e. prior to a smart grid rollout) or experimental and lab settings. These approaches miss key aspects of social acceptance because they fail to capture change over time through the interaction between stakeholders, technology, and utilities. In contrast, we compare two waves of survey data on the social acceptance of smart grid technologies, the first ( n = 609) prior to a local rollout of a smart grid program in upstate New York and the second ( n = 533) two years after the same rollout. Our results demonstrate that in contrast to the hopes of smart energy advocates, the social acceptance of four dimensions of smart grids either remain steady or decline over time. Further analyses reveal that the factors that shape acceptance also change over time. This study demonstrates that the social acceptance of smart grids may actually decrease over time even with the robust engagement of consumers, not only challenging optimistic views of smart grid technology but also challenging broader theoretical arguments in the literature on the social acceptance of energy technologies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:57:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-eeca88862d544fdaa9dd9072d427c5a6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1748-9326 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:57:12Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research Letters |
| spelling | doaj.art-eeca88862d544fdaa9dd9072d427c5a62023-08-09T14:53:36ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Letters1748-93262021-01-0116303401910.1088/1748-9326/abd81cUnfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart gridDylan Bugden0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5696-5467Richard Stedman1Washington State University , Pullman, WA, United States of AmericaCornell University , Ithaca, NY, United States of AmericaSmart grids use digital information technology to simultaneously increase energy efficiency while integrating renewables into the electric grid, making it a critical component of achieving a low-carbon energy system. Prior research on the social acceptance of smart grids has relied on either single time point assessment (i.e. prior to a smart grid rollout) or experimental and lab settings. These approaches miss key aspects of social acceptance because they fail to capture change over time through the interaction between stakeholders, technology, and utilities. In contrast, we compare two waves of survey data on the social acceptance of smart grid technologies, the first ( n = 609) prior to a local rollout of a smart grid program in upstate New York and the second ( n = 533) two years after the same rollout. Our results demonstrate that in contrast to the hopes of smart energy advocates, the social acceptance of four dimensions of smart grids either remain steady or decline over time. Further analyses reveal that the factors that shape acceptance also change over time. This study demonstrates that the social acceptance of smart grids may actually decrease over time even with the robust engagement of consumers, not only challenging optimistic views of smart grid technology but also challenging broader theoretical arguments in the literature on the social acceptance of energy technologies.https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abd81csmart gridsocial acceptancesmart meters |
| spellingShingle | Dylan Bugden Richard Stedman Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid Environmental Research Letters smart grid social acceptance smart meters |
| title | Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid |
| title_full | Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid |
| title_fullStr | Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid |
| title_short | Unfulfilled promise: social acceptance of the smart grid |
| title_sort | unfulfilled promise social acceptance of the smart grid |
| topic | smart grid social acceptance smart meters |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/abd81c |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT dylanbugden unfulfilledpromisesocialacceptanceofthesmartgrid AT richardstedman unfulfilledpromisesocialacceptanceofthesmartgrid |