Energy and Buildings, 2 (1979) 101 - 116 101 © Elsevier Sequoia S.A., Lausanne --Printed in the Netherlands Psychological Framework for Energy Conservation in Buildings: Strategies, Outcomes, Directions RICHARD A. WINETT and MICHAEL S. NEALE Institute for Behavioral Research, Inc., Silver Spring, Mid. 20910 (U.S.A.) (Received June 15, 1978) This paper reviews the concepts, methods, and procedures that psychologists and other social scientists have used to develop and field test solutions to a range of social and behav- ioral problems. Despite only minimal interest at this time by the federal government in behavioral approaches to energy conservation, there are now many reports demonstrating the application of psychologically based proce- dures to conserve energy in buildings. Methods that reward energy conservation in a number of ways have yielded meaningful short-run reductions. Extensions of current strategies and other procedures derived from a frame- work presented in the paper may eventually result in more pervasive, longer-term savings. In the light of that objective, the paper also outlines a number of micro- and macro-level projects, some involving the meshing of behav- ioral and physical technology, that can be readily conducted in residential and commer- cial buildings. INTRODUCTION Recent articles in this journal by Darley [1] and Seligman, Darley, and Becker [2] have indicated that the applied social sciences may have much to offer in the development of energy conservation strategies. These authors have also noted that "little interest, place, or priority has been accorded to social sciences approaches" [1:11], and that, at least in America, energy policy largely reflects phys- ical technology with minimal input concern- ing the human side of energy conservation. There has been only limited government sup- port of research on effective ways to motivate consumers to conserve energy in existing build- ings, optimal ways to market retrofit materials, or behavioral aspects of using conventional equipment or new devices and technology. When social scientists have been called upon to contribute in this area, their role has quite often been limited to a passive one of con- ducting surveys, polls, and the like [3]. While such an approach can at times help identify key problem areas, consumer receptivity, etc., attitudinal instruments and surveys are only one step in actually developing, implementing, and evaluating conservation procedures and programs. It is the purpose of this report to present a review of the concepts, methods, and proce- dures employed primarily by psychologists working in energy conservation research. We, the authors, shall also focus on the outcomes of various psychologically based projects to provide the reader with an indication of the extent to which such procedures may alleviate the energy problem. The reader should be advised that, as in any profession, there are a number of schools of thought. The authors would be generally defined or categorized as 'behavioral psychologists', primarily because their focus is on events and processes that directly affect behavior. We are more con- cerned with developing methods to reduce the use of air conditioning and heating than we are in finding out about general 'attitudes' toward the energy crisis. This orientation will become clearer as the report continues. FRAMEWORK The research in behavioral and social psy- chology has developed sufficiently so that it is possible to present concepts and principles that have been recently used to address a wide range of problems [4], with documented