Cross-border activity: User behaviour changes Living Lab

methodology

Botnia Living Lab

Background info on two cases

• SABER Case– Purpose to save 20% energy by visualizing consumption in private

homes– User involvement to give input on technology usage and usability– Consumers get full control of their energy consumption

• SITE case– Purpose to save 20% energy by visualizing consumption in a school– Involvement of the pupils designing the visualization– Three displays visualizing consumption in three different locations

• Classroom showing their consumption• Canteen showing whole schools consumption• Kitchen showing the kitchens consumption

Lessons learned from the cases

• Longitudinal studies are essential• Stimuli is important to create behavioral changes– Reminders from system. (e.g. a graph of the month usage

sent via e-mail)– Personal consultation and guidance based on individual

situation– Visualization in real time. In a central place in house (e.g.

kitchen). • Base-line investigation to get status from start to

be able to compare (energy consumption, behavior, attitudes)

What do we know from theory?

Energy consumption decreases when stimulated by:– Money– Real time feedback– General information about energy saving– Energy consumption directly linked to effects on environment and

climate• Challenges:

– Numerical representations do NOT lead to behavior change or increased awareness of their consumption

– Get feedback to work in the long run, users become accustomed– How the feedback should be presented to the users– Many web-services included barriers to usage and change such as

login or problems related to the artifact

Theoretical design implications

• Discrete feedback – non-intrusive• Micro activity based information – not general• Link to individuals – not collective• Give personal feedback• Users want to share their status for mutual

encouragement and development• Controllable – adjustable• Illustrate real-time data and history (trends and

changes)• Feedback in positive terms stimulates change – it

should be fun

Luleå Energy Case

• Test energy visualization technologies in private households

• Recruit and select 40 households• Baseline questionnaire about their interest in the

environment and energy consumption• Implement the technology• Each month a task and a few questions will be

sent to the users• Each task relates to psychological motivators and

ways to save energy

Examples of motivators and actions

• Idealism – improve society– Increase their awareness of how their decreased energy consumption is

beneficial for the society and environment• Curiosity – want knowledge

– Encourage users to compare and work with their energy consumption to increase their knowledge about the subject

• Independence – be autonomous– Activities that offers several options among which they can choose

• Saving – value prudence– Ask the users to, for example, count their energy saving in money

• Status – social standing– Highlight those who have saved most energy for a month

• Social contact – peer companionship– Arrange discussion forums and social media contact where they can discuss

their energy saving tips with each other

Follow up

• After each assignment, the users will get a few questions regarding: – follow up on the assignment as such to make sure they

have done it (e.g. fill in energy consumption)– the assignment as such: easy/difficult, fun/boring, etc– their experience of their energy consumption behavior

related to the assignment: influenced or not

Identified KPIs in case (how to measure behavioral changes)

• Energy consumtion (increase – decrease) • Activities with the purpose to save energy related

to motivators• Attitudes towards energy saving. (positive –

negative)

Questions

• How to stimulate behaviour change by giving them assignments? – Which tasks could be stimulating?

• How can motivators be used as a means to stimulate behaviour change?