Reframing intervention: what does a collective approach to behaviour change look like? (original) (raw)

2014, Proceedings of the Water Efficiency Conference 2014, 9-11 September 2014, Brighton, UK: WATEF Network/University of Brighton

This paper draws on a qualitative research into the patterns of domestic water consumption and demand management in the South-east of England. We present an analysis of various paths that could be, and in some cases are being, taken to mobilise collective action in order to achieve sustainable domestic water consumption. Building on a growing body of critique that posits conventional approaches to water efficiency are founded on oversimplified models of consumer behaviour, this paper explores domestic water consumption as a collectively ordered activity and outlines how this understanding can be used to inform water efficiency initiatives in order achieve sustainable domestic water consumption. First, we synthesise a range of social science literatures into four perspectives on demand as a collectively ordered activity, demonstrating the consequences of these various perspectives for the water efficiency agenda (Table 1). Second, drawing on focus group data we evaluate the evidence for each perspective and their potential to inform behaviour change initiatives. We reveal that while evidence for each set of collective drivers can be identified, some offer greater potential for intervention than others, highlighting different sites, scales and subjects to which campaigns might attend. Our discussion focusses on laundry as a specific example of domestic water use to demonstrate how taking an approach informed by this notion of ‘collective’ opens up new opportunities for intervention. Full paper available here: http://www.watefnetwork.co.uk/files/default/resources/Conference2014/WATEFCON2014Proceedings.pdf May be cited as: Hoolohan, C., and Browne, A., (2014) 'Reframing water efficiency: what might a collective approach to behaviour change look like?' In Smyth, B. and Jenkins, J. (Eds.), Proceedings of the Water Efficiency Conference 2014, 9-11 September 2014, Brighton, UK: WATEF Network/University of Brighton