Energy Research & Social Science 11 (2016) 79–91 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Energy Research & Social Science journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/erss Original research article Comparing consumer perceptions of energy security, policy, and low-carbon technology: Insights from Denmark  Benjamin K. Sovacool a,b,* , Torben Tambo a a Center for Energy Technologies, Department of Business and Technology Development, Aarhus University, Birk Centerpark 15, DK-7400 Herning, Denmark b Science & Technology Policy Research Unit (SPRU), School of Business, Management, and Economics, University of Sussex, United Kingdom a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 13 May 2015 Received in revised form 13 July 2015 Accepted 18 August 2015 Keywords: Energy security Energy sustainability Public attitudes Security of supply a b s t r a c t This study investigates how energy-users from one low-carbon country – Denmark – perceive energy security threats and dimensions compared to those from ten other countries. The purpose, in part, is to discuss the relationship between consumer perceptions of energy challenges, adoption of renewable energy, climate change, and the prices of energy services. The article’s primary source of data is a sur- vey distributed in eight languages (English, Danish, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, German, and Japanese) to 2495 respondents in Brazil, China, Denmark, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the United States. Survey results are used to test five propositions about energy security related to Denmark: the influence of culture, being “green,” the centrality of oil and gas, the salience of energy trade, and the necessity of affordable prices. The study concludes that Danish respondents rate energy security dimensions lower than most other countries, that responses invalidate a number of propositions stated in the academic literature, and that energy security is a complex topic both in theory and in practice. Furthermore the results suggest that consumer perceptions and attitudes about decentralized policy options (from the bottom-up) rate lower than governmental and institutional ones (from the top-down). © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Denmark is one of the most energy secure and sustainable countries in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Devel- opment [65]. The country has reduced its dependence on foreign sources of energy from above 90% in the 1970s to practically zero today and become net self-sufficient in its own energy production and use. Over the past thirty years, Denmark has transitioned from being almost 100% dependent on imported fuels such as oil and coal for their power plants in 1970 to becoming a net exporter of fuels and electricity today. Denmark has the lowest energy dependence of the EU27 countries [20]. The country uses wind energy to gener- ate upwards of 30% of national electricity annually (2013) and on some days, like recently, more than 100% [63]. It was able to phase out the use of virtually all oil-fired power plants in less than five years and implemented a progressive moratorium on future coal-  One of the authors of this paper is an editor for Energy Research & Social Science. They were not involved in managing the peer review process for this article. * Corresponding author at: Aarhus University, Birk Centerpark 15, Herning DK- 7400, Denmark. E-mail address: BenjaminSo@hih.au.dk (B.K. Sovacool). fired power plants in the 1990s. Their most recent strategy seeks to achieve 30% of total energy supply from renewable energy by 2025 and 100% by 2050 [11,72]. Yet how are these issues perceived by energy users, and how do Danish perspectives differ from others around the world? This study directly answers these questions by exploring how a mix of energy-users from Denmark perceive energy security threats and dimensions compared to those from a collection of ten other coun- tries. Its primary source of data is a survey distributed in eight languages (English, Danish, Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian, Ara- bic, German, and Japanese) to 2495 respondents in Brazil, China, Denmark, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, Japan, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the United States. The survey results are used to test five propositions about energy security related to some of Denmark’s national energy challenges. 2. Research methods and propositions This section describes our methods of data collection (elite interviews, a workshop, two focus groups, and a survey) before presenting five propositions or hypotheses that the study aims to test about perceptions of energy security, policy, and technology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2015.08.010 2214-6296/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.