Paul O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America.
Department of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2019 Jul 17;14(7):e0219066. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0219066. eCollection 2019.
A crucial factor in U.S. energy infrastructure development is the degree to which citizens that reside near a development support or oppose the project. While the literature offers several explanations about what shapes individuals' perceptions of energy projects, few have considered the importance of cognitive heuristics and the law of contagion. Here, we employ a survey experiment on a nationally-representative sample of 2,000 respondents to test whether knowing which energy resources connect to a high-voltage transmission line dictate support for the line. Results reveal that information about the source of electricity is fundamentally important. If a transmission line is said to carry electricity from a solar and wind development, a respondent is significantly more likely to support development of the line. If the line instead is said to carry electricity from a natural gas or coal plant, respectively, respondents are significantly less likely to support it. This study has implications for energy infrastructure development, messaging, and public acceptance of energy projects.
在美国能源基础设施发展中，一个关键因素是居住在发展项目附近的公民对该项目的支持或反对程度。虽然文献提供了一些关于是什么塑造了个人对能源项目的看法的解释，但很少有人考虑认知启发式和感染律的重要性。在这里，我们在一个具有全国代表性的 2000 名受访者样本上进行了一项调查实验，以测试了解哪些能源资源与高压输电线相连是否会影响对该线路的支持。结果表明，关于电力来源的信息至关重要。如果一条输电线被说成是从太阳能和风能开发中输送电力，那么受访者就更有可能支持该线路的发展。如果这条线路被说成是从天然气或煤炭发电厂输送电力，那么受访者就不太可能支持它。这项研究对能源基础设施发展、信息传递以及公众对能源项目的接受度都具有重要意义。
