Factors affecting adoption of smart meters in the post-Fukushima era in Taiwan: an extended protection motivation theory perspective

This study aims to understand factors influencing the intention to adopt smart meters (SM) to save energy in the face of expected increases in electricity costs, stemming from the impact of Taiwan’s plans to increase the proportion of renewable energy in the post-Fukushima era demand. As far as we know, compared to previous relevant studies based on constructs of perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitudes, this study is the first one based on the application of protection motivation theory (PMT), which uses threat appraisal, coping appraisal, Social Influence, Secondary Data Influence constructs, and control variables to explain the correlation and impact of residential communities’ intention to adopt SM. With 292 valid questionnaires, this study applies SmartPLS 3 software in model analysis, and finds that the impact of coping appraisal variables is more significant than that of threat appraisal variables, while Secondary Data Influence, Age, and Electricity Cost variables have a significant influence on the intention to adopt SM. The relevant results and practical contributions are discussed.