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  5. Household Decisions and Behavioral Energy Economics
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Household Decisions and Behavioral Energy Economics

Paper Session

Monday, Jan. 5, 2026 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM (EST)

Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, Room 404
Hosted By: International Association for Energy Economics
  • Chair: Gregory Upton Jr., Louisiana State University

Distributional Effects of Residential Solar Support Policies

Dongchen He
,
Tilburg University

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of the net metering policy on residential solar
photovoltaic adoption and its distributional effects across different wealth groups. Using
Dutch administrative data, the findings show that net metering accounts for 79.21% of
residential solar capacity from 2012 to 2022, along with a regressive effect where
households in the lowest 20% wealth group contribute a net 11.15% of the total subsidy,
while the highest 20% wealth group receives a net 10.38% of the subsidy. Replacing the net
metering policy with feed-in premiums or the upfront subsidy only improves the
redistribution by less than 1%. Moreover, compared to the net metering policy, feed-in
premiums encourage larger PV installations, and an upfront subsidy promotes smaller
capacities. Consequently, feed-in premiums export 13.37% more electricity to the grid, and
the average installation cost is 11.93% higher when an upfront subsidy applies. This implies
that a simple policy replacement may not address issues such as inequality and rising grid
costs with net metering.

Watt We Say vs. Watt We Do: Behavioral Gaps in Retail Electricity Choices

Yiseon Choi
,
Ohio State University
Noah Dormandy
,
Ohio State University
Yufan Ji
,
Ohio State University
Alberto Lamadrid
,
Lehigh University
Abdollah Shafieezadeh
,
Ohio State University

Abstract

The paper estimates willingness to pay (WTP) for a full range of residential product
attributes in deregulated retail choice markets across Ohio and Pennsylvania. Retail choice
markets allow consumers to ‘shop’ for electricity from among competing suppliers or
markets. We design and implement a comprehensive study of household electricity
consumers including in-depth interviews, their utility bill reviews, and a controlled conjoint
experiment that combines rating and choice-based approaches. We explore how
preferences for the attributes (e.g., monthly fee, price per kilowatt-hour, contract type) vary
by income, consumption, and engagement in electricity shopping quantified by a novel
composite measure of behavioral engagement constructed from multiple interview
responses. To directly examine the preference gap, we assign individual-level weights to
the attributes based on ranked preferences and compare this joint WTP to the revealed
WTP. The results show that individuals are most hesitant to monthly fees (WTP: -2.23 cents)
and willing to pay extra for renewable energy (WTP: 1.09 cents). Although the marginal
effect of choosing a renewable energy option is positive across all price levels and
respondents, the higher-income group is more inelastic for price changes. For stated
preferences, we evaluate the consistency of individuals' responses across the rating
exercise in the interview and the ranking exercise in the experiment. We find that
renewable energy preferences are the most consistent (Spearman rho: 0.41; Kendall tau:
0.32), while monthly fee preferences show the least consistency (rho: 0.04; tau: 0.03),
suggesting difficulty in explicitly evaluating cost importance despite high reactivity to it in
decisions.

A Choice Experiment to Assess Response to Smart Electric-Vehicle Charging

Ricardo Daziano
,
Cornell University

Abstract

Smart charging programs adjust the time of day of electric vehicle charging to reduce
congestion in the grid, reduce the cost of electricity, and maximize renewable energy use.
As General Motors partners with electric utilities to design and implement these programs,
it is important to understand customers' preferences and motivations for enrollment. A
choice experiment was conducted to quantify how customers make trade-offs among
program characteristics and incentives when deciding whether to enroll in a smart charging
program. The data were used to estimate two hybrid choice models, which outperform a
benchmark conditional logit model and systematically account for unobserved preference
heterogeneity using discrete--continuous mixtures. The results indicate that monetary
incentives and environmental benefits increase the likelihood of choosing a smart charging
program. Meanwhile, there is notable preference heterogeneity regarding non-monetary
program options and enrollment perks. We further used latent environmental concerns as
a useful dimension for differentiating customers: those with higher environmental
concerns tend to exhibit higher valuations of reducing emissions and maximizing
renewable energy use. We also linked preferences to four personas designed for targeted
marketing campaigns. The findings enable smart charging providers to implement targeted
marketing efforts that highlight the environmental benefits of smart charging programs to
the customer groups who are most likely to be environmentally conscious.

Clean Energy Access and Home Production Improvement: Labor Supply and Gender Difference

Kyungtae Lee
,
CUNY

Abstract

Improvements in home production play a crucial role in shaping intensive and extensive
margins of labor supply and time allocation decisions, with potential differences in impact
between men and women. This study leverages nationally representative data from Nepal
to examine the effect of clean energy access, which enhances home production, on labor
supply and time allocation decisions. A range of econometric models, including Tobit,
Heckman selection, and a selection bias model with multiple choices, are employed, with
the instrumental variable incorporated into these models. I found that clean stove
adoption causes an increase in men's labor participation while reducing women's. Men
worked 2.5 more hours and 25 more days per year with clean stoves, whereas women's
work hours did not significantly change. Although fewer women participated in the labor
force, those who did work 27 more days per year by adopting clean cookstoves. In the non-
farm sector, the women work 20 more days, and the men work 15 more days. Self-
employed women work 19 more days per year, while self-employed men work 25 more
days per year. The estimation result for five different total expenditure quintiles shows that
the clean stove impact is significant for the lowest four-quintile group for men.

Discussant(s)
Justin Kirkpatrick
,
Michigan State University
Steve Puller
,
Texas A&M University
Jingyuan Wang
,
University of Michigan
Robyn Meeks
,
Duke University
JEL Classifications
  • Q4 - Energy