THE ROLE OF THE COMFORT HALO EFFECT, PROTECTED VALUES, AND DEMOGRAPHICS WHEN APPRAISING RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES

Drawing from research on the halo effect and protected values, consumers’ adoption intentions and willingness to pay a premium for renewable energy were explored. A moderated mediation was tested through two-instance repeated-measures linear regressions in a behavioral experiment with an Amazon MTurk sample. Besides, non-parametric tests were also used to test moderations of protected values and consumers’ demographics. In line with the expected halo effect, the effects of the renewability of the energy sources on consumers’ adoption intentions were mediated through consumers’ perceived comfort. These mediation effects were stronger among consumers with high protected values compared to those with low protected values. The non-parametric tests revealed that people with protected values were also found reluctant to pay a premium price for fossil fuels. Future directions to study the relationship between the renewability of energy sources and consumers’ willingness to pay a premium considering consumers’ demographics are also discussed