Household energy preferences personalised: Insights from a choice survey in which respondents choose the attributes

In this thesis I describe the results of a web-based choice survey of homeowner preferences for attributes of behaviours and technologies to improve energy-efficiency in the home. The choice survey is novel in that respondents choose their six most important attributes from a list of eighteen. The sample consists of 149 Dunedin homeowners (33% response rate) who vary considerably in their house/household characteristics. The choices of attributes across respondents indicate both consistency and heterogeneity. Three attributes all related to the effectiveness of the improvement were each chosen by at least 70% of respondents. Cluster analysis reveals six plausible groupings of respondents with respect to choice of attributes. The relative values of each attribute chosen are highly heterogeneous. Both choice of attributes and their relative values correspond plausibly but rather weakly with house/household characteristics. These results suggest the potential benefit to the household of reliable information tailored to their preferences/context