Does Absolution Promote Sin? A Conservationist’s Dilemma

Matthew Harding () and David Rapson
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Matthew Harding: University of California - Irvine

Environmental & Resource Economics, 2019, vol. 73, issue 3, No 9, 923-955

Abstract: Abstract This paper shows that households signing up for a green program exhibit an intriguing behavioral rebound effect: a promise to fully offset customers’ carbon emissions resulting from electricity usage increases their energy use post-adoption by 1–3%. The response is robust across empirical specifications, and is consistent with an economic model of rational energy consumption. Our results provide a cautionary tale for designing green product strategies in which the adoption of a product may lead to unexpected consequences.

Keywords: Carbon offsets; Behavioral rebound; Green marketing; Energy consumption (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10640-018-0301-5

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