Andrius Kažukauskas, Vilnius University, will present the paper "Supercharging social comparison information: Experimental evidence on residential energy and water use", which studies spill-over effects between conservation efforts targeted at energy and water savings, respectively.

The paper reports results from field experimental on spillover effects of social comparisons on energy and water use in the residential sector. It finds that social comparisons targeted on electricity use induce conservation beyond electricity, leading also to substantial reductions in energy use for water and space heating.

Meanwhile, social comparisons targeted on water use induce little or no effects on electricity, water, and space heating. The paper argues that the differences between the two experiments can be explained by the differences in preexisting social norms and moral dissonance.

The effects appear to be more pronounced among households at the higher percentiles of resource use. Overall, the results suggest that spillover effects could be as large as direct effects of behavioral interventions, if strong preexisting social norms can be drawn on.