Aligning Wind Energy Development with National Cultural Dimensions

Abstract

This dissertation studied how wind development operates in different national cultural environments in order to answer the overarching question: How does culture impact wind energy development? Situated within cross-cultural comparison and social acceptance research, the three studies in this dissertation offer tools for understanding and comparing the cultural context of different nations with respect to wind energy innovation. Fundamental to this research was the development of a new quantitative model for cross-cultural comparisons. Based on the World Values Survey, an inductive big data approach discovered five national cultural dimensions using multidimensional item response theory (MIRT). They are (1) Religiosity, (2) Neutrality, (3) Fairness, (4) Skepticism, and (5) Uncertainty Tolerance. While a deeply simplified representation of culture and the diversity within a nation, each dimension offers a useful tool for modelling cross-cultural differences and can be used to help us understand the impacts of culture on different political, economic, and development variables. This new cultural framework was applied to the development of wind energy in two studies. First, Fairness and Uncertainty Tolerance significantly correlated with installed wind capacity of 42 nations around the globe using a multivariate linear regression. Based on diffusion theory, these findings suggest that countries with high scores for Uncertainty Tolerance and Fairness may be more accepting of wind development. We suggest that Fairness supports wind development through developing opportunities for new technology to enter the energy market as well as through support for equitable impacts (e.g. positive externalities). Similarly, countries with high levels of Uncertainty Tolerance may be more likely to adopt wind energy despite the variability in electricity production. Lastly, Religiosity indirectly relates to the proportion of installed wind capacity. While the relationship is an order of magnitude smaller, the relationship suggest that nations with less connections to religion tend to have more installed wind energy. In the final study of this dissertation, wind developers from Sweden and the United States provided insight into how Uncertainty Tolerance and Fairness influence the social acceptance of wind development. In Sweden, high Uncertainty Tolerance was visible through the planning policies, such as the municipal veto and in the siting process through less systematic stakeholder engagement strategies. In the United States, lower Uncertainty Tolerance was observed through distributed decision-making and comprehensive, targeted stakeholder engagement strategies. The United States and Sweden have similar Fairness scores, which were visible through the inclusion of public participation and compromises with stakeholders. The findings of this dissertation can be used in several practical ways. First, in future research the national cultural dimensions can be used in conjunction with or as a replacement for other national cultural values to deepen the understanding of cross-cultural differences. Second, understanding how Religiosity, Uncertainty Tolerance and Fairness drive energy innovations allows international renewable energy companies to adapt their development practices such that they are more successful. Finally, this dissertation contributes to the nexus of social and technical knowledge for planners, developers, and engineers so that they may make informed choices about the societies that they impact.