Factors Influencing Solar Energy Technology Adoption by Households in Western Province Sri Lanka

Abstract

The acceptance and slow growth of solar energy in Sri Lanka is a major barrier. The aim of this study was to identify the factors which are more considerable when adopting solar energy technology. Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Diffusion Of Innovation (DOI), Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and Transaction Cost Economics theory (TCE) are the theories that are used to develop the research foundation. Basically five key factors have been identified: namely Relative Advantage, Perceived Behavioural Control, Perceived Ease of Use, Awareness of the Technology and Perceived Cost. A self-administrated questionnaire was conducted to collect data from a sample of 384 respondent households. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypothesis. The result of the study indicates that all the key factors have a positive impact with adoption of solar energy technology. Creating better awareness of the benefits of solar energy usage and increase awareness among people towards their responsibility to use green energy sources can encourage the rate of usage amount in domestic consumers. Providing financial support, obtaining continuous feedback and providing free technical advisory schemes are also good practical implications. From a managerial viewpoint these findings can be used for strategic planning to determine effective marketing activities to change customer’s intention to ensure sustainable business growth. Important policy making decision and investment decisions can be taken by these estimates. In consumer’s perspective the study enhances knowledge on solar energy as a power source of green energy for small scale households in urban areas. Though geographical unfairness act as the main limitation, since the high density of population, income level and urbanization of observed area, the result can be generalized to the urbanized households.