Meta-analysis on comparative impact of behavioral, information, and monetary interventions on energy-efficient appliance adoption
Achieving energy efficiency in households is essential for climate mitigation, yet adoption remains low despite the availability of cost-effective technologies. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesizes evidence from experimental and quasi-experimental studies assessing the efficacy of behavioral, information, and monetary interventions in efficient appliance adoption across three outcomes: purchase decisions, market share, and postpurchase energy consumption. The interventions yield small to medium average effects for purchase decisions, with labeling and information strategies performing on par with monetary interventions; loans show no discernible impact. Results are statistically robust but may be overstated due to reliance on stated preferences and study biases. Importantly, market-level effects and realized energy savings remain understudied, but the limited evidence suggests the presence of rebound effects in energy savings depending on the context. These findings provide program implementers with synthesized evidence on intervention effectiveness that should be weighed against implementation cost and scalability. Future research should cover the effects of interventions on economic welfare. Greater transparency in costs and welfare effects is essential to inform policy design and improve the marginal value of public expenditure in energy efficiency.
Khanna, T., D. Danilenko, L. Tomberg, S. Hansteen, M. Andor, P. Lohmann, L. Ruesche Neggia and J. Minx (2026), Meta-analysis on comparative impact of behavioral, information, and monetary interventions on energy-efficient appliance adoption. PNAS Nexus, 5, 5, pgag129