Correlates of Energy Use: Domestic Electricity Consumption in Sydney

The role of income in domestic electricity consumption, compared with the influence of other sociophysical characteristics such as household or dwelling structure, has long been under debate. The major problem is one of multicollinearity among the independent variables. Sequential regression models are used to overcome this problem. The role of income is disaggregated from that of gas usage, dwelling type, dwelling size, and family structure, and found to be less important than some studies would suggest. Much of its influence is indirect, its role often that of a surrogate for other causative influences. The importance of these findings bears on the development of government policies in the electricity conservation area.