Mind Over Market: Behavioural Determinants of Renewable Energy Investment Adoption in India

Sudarshana Sharma (), Shubhangi V. Gaikwad (), Sandeep Raghuwanshi (), Priyanka Sikarwar (), Reetika Agarwal () and Deepti Verma ()
Additional contact information
Sudarshana Sharma: Karnavati University, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India
Shubhangi V. Gaikwad: MIT World Peace University, Pune, Maharashtra, India
Sandeep Raghuwanshi: Parul University, Vadodara, Gujarat, India
Priyanka Sikarwar: Amity University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India
Reetika Agarwal: Babu Banarasi Das University, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
Deepti Verma: Sharda University, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, 2025, vol. 15, issue 6, 172-182

Abstract: This study investigates the psychological and behavioural drivers affecting the adoption of renewable energy investments in India, a rapidly developing nation with urgent energy transition targets. Despite technological and financial incentives, adoption remains minimal, necessitating an exploration of the cognitive and dispositional factors influencing human investment intentions. A structured questionnaire was distributed to 416 urban participants in Tier-I and Tier-II Indian cities. Metrics including cognitive biases, behavioural inertia, gain/loss framing, personality factors, and green behavioural spillover were assessed utilising validated scales. The data were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) in IBM AMOS, which facilitated the evaluation of both the measurement models for understanding the behavioural determinants of renewable energy investment adoption. The findings indicated that all five behavioural characteristics had a substantial impact on plans to invest in renewable energy. Green behavioural spillover revealed as the most significant predictor, succeeded by cognitive biases and personality characteristics. The model explained 67% of the variance in investment intentions, underscoring the significance of behavioural factors in renewable energy transitions. This paper proposes an innovative behavioural framework specific to India, addressing deficiencies in current techno-economic adoption models. The results provide practical guidance for developing behavioural treatments, focused awareness campaigns, and policy instruments that correspond with psychological motivators, so improving the efficacy of renewable energy adoption methods.

Keywords: Renewable Energy Adoption; Behavioural Economics; Cognitive Bias; Prospect Theory; Personality Traits; Green Spillover; India (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://econjournals.com/index.php/ijeep/article/download/20398/9294 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eco:journ2:v:15:y:2025:i:6:id:20398

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://econjournals.com/index.php/ijeep

DOI: 10.32479/ijeep.20398

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy from International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Monica Sinhat ().