White papers and reports reflect rigorous academic research and in-depth findings from the field supporting the effectiveness of our products and the scientific basis of our method. The white papers and reports listed below have been written by independent industry analysts as well as OPOWER staff.
- Understanding and Motivating Energy Conservation via Social Norms - OPOWER Chief Scientist Dr. Robert Cialdini and Dr. Wesley Schultz's three-year Hewlett Foundation study on the role of normative beliefs in decisions to conserve energy
- Social Norms and Energy Conservation - A paper on behavioral science and energy conservation by Hunt Allcott and Sendhil Mullainathan, professor of economics at Harvard University
- Residential Energy Use Behavior Change Pilot - A study by Franklin Energy on the power of social norms, detailing OPOWER's success with indirect feedback at SMUD
- Residential Electricity Use Feedback: A Research Synthesis and Economic Framework by Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). This study finds that, although some research questions remain, electricity use feedback, including "enhanced billing" like OPOWER (formerly Positive Energy) provides, can encourage energy conservation."
To see reports with containing independent, third-party verification of OPOWER results, please click here.