Improving the take-up of energy efficiency assistance by low-income households

Last registered on October 01, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Improving the take-up of energy efficiency assistance by low-income households
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0011406
Initial registration date
May 17, 2023

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
May 24, 2023, 11:55 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
October 01, 2026, 2:29 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Germany
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Madeline Werthschulte
Affiliation
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Timo Goeschl
PI Affiliation
Heidelberg University
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PI Name
Bettina Chlond
PI Affiliation
ETH Zurich
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PI Name
Martin Kesternich
PI Affiliation
University of Augsburg
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Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2023-05-25
End date
2026-09-30
Keywords
Behavior, Environment & Energy
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We conduct a field experiment in cooperation with an energy efficiency assistance program in Germany. As part of that program, the participating low-income households receive a letter informing them about eligibility for a voucher for replacing their old refrigerator against a new, efficient one. We complement that information letter by three types of nudges. Following classic behavioral economic research, the nudges introduce a gain vs. a loss framing to the information letter. Further, we adopt simplified versions (both in terms of icons and in terms of a checklist) to ease the cognitive burden the low-income households may experience. We study the effect of the nudges on (i) the likelihood that the household requests the voucher and (ii) the likelihood that the household invests in energy efficiency.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Chlond, Bettina et al. 2026. "Improving the take-up of energy efficiency assistance by low-income households." AEA RCT Registry. October 01. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.11406-2.1
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2023-05-25
Intervention End Date
2026-09-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Voucher request (yes/no), refrigerator replacement (yes/no)
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Our cooperation partner registers all low-income households that participate in the energy efficiency assistance program in a program database and determines their eligibility for a refrigerator replacement voucher based on appliance age and estimated energy savings from replacement. Eligible households are part of our experiment and the computer randomizes households into one of seven experimental groups. Group assignment determines the version of the information letter that the household receives to inform about voucher eligibility and the steps required to redeem the voucher in cash. A control group receives the standard information letter without any of our interventions. The “Gain Frame”-group is informed about the energy savings from replacing the old refrigerator and sees the abstract image of a purse with money dropping into the purse. The “Loss Frame”-group is informed about forgone savings of not replacing the refrigerator and sees the purse icon with money dropping from the purse. In the “Simple Gain Frame”-treatment the information content of the “Gain Frame” is presented with additional graphical icons (a fridge, the purse, a happy smiley). In the “Simple Loss Frame”-treatment the information content of the “Loss Frame” is presented with additional icons (crossed-out fridge, the purse losing money, a sad smiley). In a “Checklist”-treatment we present the necessary steps to redeem the voucher in cash in form of a checklist. In a “Checklist and Simple Gain”-treatment we combine the checklist presentation, with the gain framing presented with icons. After having received the information letter, households decide whether they request the voucher and whether they replace their old refrigerator against a new, energy-efficient refrigerator. Both the request- and replacement-choice are the outcome variables of interest. Our hypothesis is that low-income households may lack the cognitive capacity to process the information presented in the letter, thus both the icons and the checklist are intended to simplify the information content. The hypothesis of the gain and loss framing follows classic behavioral economic research according to which loss framings enable greater behavioral change.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization by the computer.
Randomization Unit
Household
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
4137 households
Sample size: planned number of observations
4137 households
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
591 households per treatment
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences at Heidelberg University
IRB Approval Date
2023-05-16
IRB Approval Number
FESS-HD-2023-007
Analysis Plan

Analysis Plan Documents

PAP_Improving energy efficiency assistance take-up.pdf

MD5: 32727e55bf6513925856ec10742b9e71

SHA1: 1f9d3151de99023f0cfe6f6ea7c13945e7eb57d5

Uploaded At: September 29, 2026

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials