Adoption of solar home lighting system: a behavioral paradigm shift from consumers to prosumers in the urban household energy transition of Punjab, India

Abstract This research explores the question of what inspires households to adopt a solar home lighting system (SHS) in Punjab, one of the wealthiest states of India with adequate solar potential. This research leverages the framework of the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT2) to identify adoption drivers and their impact on behavioral intentions moderated by age, socioeconomic status, and usage, with a particular emphasis on urban households, as they have been the subject of very few studies. The proposed research model was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) in Smart PLS4. The study verified that the UTAUT2 constructs are the drivers of SHS adoption and significantly impact behavioral intention (R2 = 0.730). The findings suggested that for fiscally conservative prosumers, reduced monthly electricity bills were the greatest motivator for adopting SHSs, and our assumption that all prosumers are earth-loving environmentalists was not the case, suggesting that environmental concerns are not enough to explain SHS adoption. Age ( β = 0.137, p < 0.01) was found to have a significant moderation effect on the behavioral intention to adopt SHS, while usage ( β = −0.115; p = 0.21) and socioeconomic status ( β = 0.006; p value = 0.888) were found to have no moderating effect on the behavioral intentions of adoption drivers. The results could serve as a roadmap for policymakers while framing government policies to improve the penetration of this new and promising green technology for the coherent domestic energy transition of consumers to prosumers.