What they studied
The researchers tested whether two kinds of feedback could help households reduce electricity use:
- A weekly comparison showing how each household’s consumption compared with similar neighbours.
- A real-time display showing the household’s current electricity use.
The study included 1,240 households and lasted twelve months.
How they studied it
Households were placed into groups receiving one of the two feedback designs or into a control group without the intervention. The researchers then compared changes in electricity use across the groups over time.
What they found
- Households receiving weekly neighbour comparisons used 4.1% less electricity than the control group.
- The estimated true reduction was likely between 2.8% and 5.4%, based on the reported 95% confidence interval.
- Real-time displays did not produce a statistically reliable reduction after the first three months.
- Most of the savings came from households that had initially been heavy electricity users.
Effect-size reality check
A 4.1% reduction is modest but potentially meaningful because weekly comparisons are likely inexpensive to deliver at scale. For a household using 10,000 kWh per year, it would equal about 410 kWh saved annually. Actual financial and environmental benefits would depend on local electricity prices and how the electricity was generated.
The real-time displays may have had a short-term effect, but any benefit appears to have faded by month three.
Limitations to keep in mind
- The abstract does not explain how households were assigned to groups, so it is unclear how confidently the differences can be attributed to the feedback itself.
- It provides little information about household location, demographics, electricity prices, weather, or housing characteristics, which may limit generalizability.
- The study lasted one year, so it cannot show whether the neighbour-comparison effect persists longer.
- Because effects were concent