Energy Saving Behaviour Assessment Scale (ESBAS): A Validated Instrument to Assess Determinants of Energy Saving Behaviour

Energy Saving Behaviour Assessment Scale (ESBAS) was created to assess students’ values regarding energy use, including their feelings about environmental protection, the financial costs of energy, personal comfort, the specific actions a person takes to save energy including habits and routines and the internal and external drives for saving energy. The Energy Saving Behaviour Assessment Scale was drafted and pilot tested among high school students across Kerala, India. Initial exploration of the measure yielded promising results: The Cronbach’s reliability coefficient for the scale was 0.79 and Item analysis revealed discrimination indices above the permissible range for all items in the scale. Factor Analysis was used to select appropriate questions for the Energy Saving Behaviour Assessment Scale with due importance being given to each of the factors. The field-tested ESBAS includes six factors namely Self Efficacy, Perceived Severity, Response Cost, Response efficacy, Subjective Norms and Perceived Vulnerability. The ESBAS is particularly useful for determining the energy saving behaviours of potential responders and evaluating the broader effects of educational initiatives.