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Why consumers in Europe do not use energy efficient automatic dishwashers to clean their dishes?

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Abstract

There is a large influence of consumer behaviour on the resource consumption of owners and non-owners of automatic dishwashers. Therefore, it was the task to explore what kind of habits and intentions of consumers in Europe can be identified which restrict the consumer from using an automatic dishwasher, either not buying one or not using it, although it is available in the household. This was carried out on a representative level with a sufficiently high number of participants to avoid conclusions being taken on a statistical basis that is too small. The question is answered from different perspectives: Why do owners of an energy efficient automatic dishwasher not use it properly and what arguments do non-owners have for not buying one?

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  1. Toluna, Frankfurt, Germany

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Acknowledgements

The consumer survey was supported by donations from the CECED (European Committee of Domestic Equipment Manufacturers), Henkel AG & Co KGaA, Procter&Gamble Europe and Reckitt Benckiser. The questionnaire was developed with support from members of the Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (JRC-IPTS) of the European Commission.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Household and Appliance Technology, University of Bonn, Nussallee 6, D-53115, Bonn, Germany

    Rainer Stamminger, Angelika Schmitz & Ina Hook

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  1. Rainer Stamminger
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  2. Angelika Schmitz
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  3. Ina Hook
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Correspondence to Rainer Stamminger.

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Stamminger, R., Schmitz, A. & Hook, I. Why consumers in Europe do not use energy efficient automatic dishwashers to clean their dishes?. Energy Efficiency 12, 567–583 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12053-018-9648-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12053-018-9648-2

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