Dorm Sustainability
Ferguson, M. A., Branscombe, N. R., & Reynolds, K. J. (2011). The effect of intergroup comparison on willingness to perform sustainable behavior. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 31(4), 275-281.
Ferguson et al. (2011) uses a psychological and sociological approach focusing on the effect of normative appeals. It shows how groups and individuals respond to comparisons with other groups and how this changes perceptions of personal conservation practices.
Buksa et al. (2011) incorporates a psychological approach finding that Generation Y generally recognizes athletes as role models. It is also found that they will engage in word-of-mouth recommendation behavior involving services and products endorsed by their role model athletes.
Brewer et al. (2011) takes a sociological approach focusing on how competition may foster change in a group of University dorms. The article also contains an education component involving ecological literacy of competitors.
The following is a list of the relevant social science research that we found and utilized to develop our recommendations for the University of Michigan.
Brewer, R. S., Lee, G. E. & Johnson, P. M. (2011). The Kukui Cup: a dorm energy competition focused on sustainable behavior change and energy literacy. System Sciences (HICSS), 2011 44th Hawaii International Conference on Systematic Sciences, 1-10.
Buksa, I., & Mitsis, A. (2011). Generation Y's athlete role model perceptions on PWOM behaviour. Young Consumers Insight and Ideas for Responsible Marketers, 12(4), 337-347.
Research
Grevet, C., Mankoff, J., & Anderson, S. D. (2010). Design and evaluation of a social visualization aimed at encouraging sustainable behavior. 2010 43rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences, 1-8. doi: 10.1109/HICSS.2010.135
Marcell, K., Agyeman, J., & Rappaport, A. (2004). Cooling the campus: Experiences from a pilot study to reduce electricity use at Tufts University, USA, using social marketing methods. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 5(2), 169-189.
Petersen, J. E., Shunturov, V., Janda, K., Platt, G., & Weinberger, K. (2007). Dormitory residents reduce electricity consumption when exposed to real-time visual feedback and incentives. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 8(1), 16-33. doi: 10.1108/14676370710717562
Grevet et al. (2010) takes both a psychological and sociological approach. It describes the effect social group comparisons have on an individual's behavior, explores visual relations between groups that can motivate behavior, and involves comparison to individual methods to motivate behaviors.
Marcell et al. (2004) utilizes a communication, education, and psychological approach. The study exposes participants to an educational program on climate change and social marketing campaigns, while discussing dorm energy use and the various ways that a student can reduce their own consumption.
Petersen et al. (2007) takes a psychological approach observing the influences that incentives, real-time v.s. periodic feedback, and education have on an individual’s conservation behaviors. It also has a communication aspect, using interactive social action and information to promote the behavior.
Kahler, S. (2003). The ripple effect: how one dorm room can affect a university's energy use. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 4(3), 230-238.
Sussman, R., Greeno, M., Gifford, R., & Scannell, L. (2013, January). The Effectiveness of Models and Prompts on Waste Diversion: A Field Experiment on Composting by Cafeteria Patrons. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 43(1), 24-34.
Sussman et al. (2013) uses a psychological and communication approach focusing on the effects of prompts and incentives to promote and increase individual sustainable behaviors, specifically composting in cafeterias.
Kahler, S. (2003) uses an education and communication approach to teach students who live in the dorms about what they can do to lead to sustainable lifestyles. By showcasing a green dorm, the students can see energy-saving appliances and learn sustainable behavior.