recognition of the environmental, residing,  and socio-demographic factors that have a powerful impact on the daily energy-saving behaviors

 recognition of the environmental, residing,  and socio-demographic factors that have a powerful impact on the daily energy-saving behaviors

The authors of this paper are addressing the recognition of the environmental, residing,  and socio-demographic factors that have a powerful impact on the daily energy-saving behaviors, adopting of appliances that are energy-efficient, and the new investments made by British households which are energy efficient. The passage,” The UK government is committed to reducing carbon emissions by at least 80% by 2050 and to improving the energy efficiency of the UK’s residential building stock. Achieving significant improvements in the energy efficiency of the UK’s housing stock has the potential to contribute substantially to the three challenges of the energy trilemma. Such developments not only would decarbonize the energy system but also would ensure that the energy supply is secure and that energy is affordable. Moreover, better levels of energy efficiency can improve occupants’ health, safety, and comfort, in addition to lowering maintenance costs and making homes a more delightful place in which to live”,  is the central message of the implicit and explicit arguments of the authors of this passage (Page 1)

The author’s explicit argument is that the energy behaviors and energy efficiency investment decisions are complex and shaped by many factors, both individual and contextual. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop a unified approach to domestic energy reduction that simultaneously addresses technical and infrastructural energy efficiency investments as well as occupant energy habits and daily practices, taking into account the heterogeneity of households and dwellings. In this passage, the author has used the household data which was collected through adopting the Survey of Public Attitudes and Behaviours, the nonlinear principal components analysis (NLPCA), ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, and probit methods to examine the factors that drive energy-saving behaviors and energy efficiency investments of British households. The author argues that Households can reduce their energy consumption and related emissions by investing in energy efficiency solutions and/or by adopting energy-saving behaviors.  He adds that even though energy efficiency refers to the adoption of specific technologies that reduce overall energy consumption, energy-saving is merely a change in consumer behavior that leads to energy savings without investing in new technologies.

The research question is imperative as it provides novel evidence concerning the socio-demographic, dwelling, and environmental factors driving the energy-saving behaviors and energy efficiency investments of British households. This aids in tracing different profiles with specific characteristics of British households regarding conservation and efficiency measures.

In the study, the author has used the household data collected through adopting the Survey of Public Attitudes and Behaviours, the nonlinear principal components analysis (NLPCA), ordinary least squares (OLS) regression, and probit methods. The author has used an interdisciplinary approach to examine the broad spectrum of socio-demographic, environmental, and dwelling factors that drive energy-saving behaviors and energy efficiency investments of British households. The data used is appropriate to the study as it has helped the author to effectively address the various energy behaviors that households should adopt to reduce energy consumption.

The author has used evidence as a method to support his arguments. To put this in context, he argues that households can reduce their energy consumption and related emissions by investing in energy efficiency solutions and/or by adopting energy-saving behaviors. Nevertheless, he goes further and provides evidence to his argument by suggesting that several studies, such as the Oikonomou  Elastica study that was carried out in 2009, have examined the differences between these two concepts in recent years and indicate that. In contrast, energy efficiency refers to the adoption of specific technologies that reduce overall energy consumption without changing the relevant behaviors and achieving the maximum services obtainable, energy-saving is merely a change in consumer behavior that leads to energy savings without investing in new technologies. The author has also employed reasoning as a method of building support for his arguments in various instances. For instance, he defines energy-saving behaviors gives an explanation on how different households can adopt a variety of energy-saving behaviors to save energy as they are the ones who decide on how warm their homes, the temperature to use when washing their clothes and when to turn the lights off.  These methods are appropriate as they bring out the whole message of the author in a perfect way. I say this because, as I have been reading through the article, the use of explanations and the provision of several pieces of evidence by the author has assisted me in understanding the article with ease.

This analysis is terrific as it follows the normal analysis format. It begins by providing an abstract that gives a summary of the contents of the analysis. An introduction then follows where the author prepares the readers for the information they’ll encounter in the passage. In the introduction, the author mentions how the UK government is determined to reduce carbon emissions to improve the energy efficiency of the residential building stock of the UK. He then goes further and states the methodologies used in data collection, how the data is collected, definitions of some terms used in the article, and gives a brief explanation of the terms. The body of the article addresses the literature findings in the behavior of energy, describes data and methods used in the study, and shows the results of econometric estimations in which energy-saving behaviors are compared and distinguished. Finally, the conclusion provides a brief summary of the introduction and the body. Some of the drawbacks of this analysis include the failure to use a wide variety of data collection methods. There are no threats to the validity of the analysis as it provides factual information regarding energy consumption, which can’t be altered whatsoever.

Key results refer to a set of metrics that measure ones’ progress towards his or her objectives. They are usually measurable and quantitative. In this article, the author has used  NLPCA, OLS regression, and VAF  methods to analyze the daily energy-saving behaviors of British households and obtain some key results. For instance, NLPCA has been used in the article to give a Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.908, suggesting a relatively high inconsistency in the use of energy-saving behaviors. The key results show different profiles of British households concerning energy-saving behavior practices.

The key conclusions that can be drawn from the results obtained in the empirical analysis carried out in the study are as follows. Although the probability of investing in energy efficiency retrofit measures increases in older age groups, mixed results emerge from the relationship of the age factor with energy-saving behaviors. Compared to single respondents, married respondents are positively associated with energy-saving behaviors.  However, women seem more likely to purchase energy-efficient appliances than men.  Also, medium and high-income households appear less likely to save energy through daily activities but more likely to invest in energy efficiency retrofit measures compared to low-income households. Notwithstanding,  households living in a flat seem more likely to adopt energy-saving behaviors than households living in a terraced house but less likely to invest in energy efficiency retrofit measures. Finally, Pro-environmental behavior, attitude, and knowledge are positively correlated with energy-saving behaviors and the adoption of energy-efficient appliances, but not with energy-efficient retrofit investments. The conclusions imply that policymakers and energy-saving organizations need to devote more attention to the household profiles that are less likely to reduce energy consumption. Besides, an optimal policy strategy should be used to encourage people to improve energy efficiency in their homes, reduce their energy use, and change their behavior.

I think the author didn’t address what should be done to increase energy production. He has given energy-saving a lot of attention, forgetting energy production, which is crucial as well.  An economy with a low level of energy production will experience negative growth. The living standards of its citizens will be low. Therefore, it is essential to address various methods that can be used to increase energy production levels in a country. I think the author didn’t address the question because his primary focus on this article was energy-saving. To address it, I will employ various data collection methods, analyze the collected data, then draw appropriate conclusions.

This paper gives a perfect representation of empirical analysis. The author has used historical survey data obtained from the “Survey of Public Attitudes and Behaviours towards the Environment” collected in 2009. He has then represented the data collected in tables and graphs and analyzed it using   NLPCA, OLS regression, and VAF  methods. Based on the results obtained from the data collected using the techniques, he has interpreted the daily energy-saving behaviors of British households and obtained some key findings. Finally, in writing his conclusions, he has highlighted the critical inferences regarding energy saving after providing a summary of his previous work. Thus, the author has followed the stipulated protocol of analysis.