Emotions towards a mandatory adoption of renewable energy innovations: The role of psychological reactance and egoistic and biospheric values

Policies that mandate the adoption of renewable energy innovations could ensure their widespread adoption. Yet, such policies may not be implemented if they face strong opposition from public, especially when negative emotions are at core opposition. In a field experiment (N = 97), we investigated people’s emotional responses to two policy options aimed increasing heat pumps in neighbourhood city Groningen: campaign promoting voluntary versus regulation mandates pumps. line with reactance theory, option mandating was perceived threaten freedom more and, turn, caused stronger and weaker positive than towards were also related values, providing partial support for Value-Innovation-Congruence model Emotional responses. Stronger egoistic values emotions, particularly adoption, while biospheric but only Emotions, acceptability options. Our findings imply measures reducing profit considering values.