Understanding Energy Practices: A Case for Qualitative Research

ABSTRACT

While researching the adoption of residential solar electric technology through a comparative two-state case study, participating solar electric technology adopters indicated some ways that policy—namely, the structure of incentives provided via their state’s renewable portfolio standard (RPS), local rebate program incentives, and the requirements for eligibility to receive economic incentives—influenced their energy behaviors both prior to and after installing solar electricity at home. Arguably, insight into the nuances of their energy practices emerged as a function of research design involving a qualitative interview process that allowed for unstudied and unpredicted responses during the interview process. This note makes a case for using qualitative research methods to understand energy behaviors as a method for exploring energy practices, consistent with an emergent emphasis on practice theory in studies of natural resource consumption.

KEYWORDS:

• Energy behavior
• motivations for behavior
• practice theory
• qualitative research
• solar technology adoption

Notes

¹Wisconsin and Colorado are similar politically, with high concentrations of political liberalism in urban areas and contrastingly high rates of conservatism in rural areas. According to U.S. Census data, median household income is lower in Wisconsin ($51,598) than in Colorado ($56,456; national median income is $51,914). The poverty rate in Colorado is slightly higher (12.2%) than in Wisconsin (11.6%), but both are below the national poverty rate (13.8%). Homeownership rate in Colorado is 67.6%, with a median home value of $236,600; homeownership rate in Wisconsin is 69.5% with a median home value of $169,000.