title: A socio-technical approach to improving retail energy efficiency behaviours.
abstract: In recent years, the UK retail sector has made a significant contribution to societal responses on carbon reduction. We provide a novel and timely examination of environmental sustainability from a systems perspective, exploring how energy-related technologies and strategies are incorporated into organisational life. We use a longitudinal case study approach, looking at behavioural energy efficiency from within one of the UK's leading retailers. Our data covers a two-year period, with qualitative data from a total of 131 participants gathered using phased interviews and focus groups. We introduce an adapted socio-technical framework approach in order to describe an existing organisational behavioural strategy to support retail energy efficiency. Our findings point to crucial socio-technical and goal-setting factors which both impede and/or enable energy efficient behaviours, these include: tensions linked to store level perception of energy management goals; an emphasis on the importance of technology for underpinning change processes; and, the need for feedback and incentives to support the completion of energy-related tasks. We also describe the evolution of a practical operational intervention designed to address issues raised in our findings. Our study provides fresh insights into how sustainable workplace behaviours can be achieved and sustained over time. Secondly, we discuss in detail a set of issues arising from goal conflict in the workplace; these include the development of a practical energy management strategy to facilitate secondary organisational goals through job redesign.
authors.affiliation: CICE, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK. Electronic address: sianchristina@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Sian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Christina
authors.affiliation: Human Factors and Complex Systems Group, Loughborough Design School, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Waterson
authors.affiliation: School of Civil and Building Engineering, Loughborough University, Loughborough LE11 3TU, UK.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dainty
authors.affiliation: Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK.
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Daniels
mesh_terms: D001290:Attitude; D001519:Behavior; D003132:Commerce / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003246:Conservation of Energy Resources; D004780:Environment, Controlled; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007587:Job Description; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008283:Maintenance; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009936:Organizational Innovation; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D013597:Systems Analysis; D006113:United Kingdom
keywords: Energy efficiency; Job design; Multiple goal conflict