Abstract

Real-time feedback technologies, which provide households with personalized data on their consumption, are becoming increasingly widespread and expose households to multiple social comparisons. This study explores whether delivering such feedback simultaneously for multiple environmental goods (water and electricity) triggers behavioral spillovers or enhances the effectiveness of these interventions, including when they are combined with financial incentives. We develop a theoretical model of consumer decision-making—identifying key behavioral mechanisms—with empirical evidence from a large-scale online field experiment involving over 1,500 French households. Our findings confirm the established impact of social norm information on consumptions. However, we observe no significant behavioral spillovers between water and electricity use, suggesting that feedback on one resource does not automatically influence the other. Notably, we uncover a powerful complementarity between pricing and social norms, revealing that their joint implementation amplifies conservation efforts. These insights offer actionable guidance for policymakers designing multi-resource interventions to maximize environmental and economic outcomes.

Practical information