Resource conservation through improved efficiency, behavioral change, or both: Willingness to pay for (smart) efficient shower heads

Based on an incentivized survey experiment, we estimate the willingness-to-pay (WTP) for three types of efficient shower heads: (i) A "smart" shower head that provides real-time feedback, leading to behavioral changes that may reduce water and energy use. (ii) A "low-flow" shower head that reduces water and energy use by mechanically reducing the water flow. (iii) A low-flow shower head that additionally offers the real-time feedback function. The empirical results show that respondents expect the low-flow shower head to be the most resource conserving, while the WTP is higher for the smart shower head types. This suggests that respondents expect cobenefits from the smart shower head types beyond resource savings. Common arguments against the deployment of efficient shower heads, such as a reduced comfort or shower enjoyment, are not corroborated by our survey data, as only a minority agrees with such concerns.