Factors Influencing Households’ Intention to Adopt Solar PV : A Systematic Review

Abstract

Rising energy needs, concerns of energy security, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, climate change phenomenon and a push to utilize indigenous sources for energy generation purposes has encouraged the use of solar photovoltaics (PV). The technological advancements of the recent past, improvement in technologies’ performance, reduction in the prices, policy and regulatory support, and its applicability at household level has made solar energy as a preferred form of energy generation. However, despite its rapid diffusion, it is widely believed that its current application is insignificant compared to its potential. This leads us to ask why solar PV has not been adopted to the level it should have. The existing literature has highlighted a number of factors affecting solar PV adoption. This paper systematically reviews the literature to identify the factors that have been instrumental to solar PV adoption. By exploring the Scopus database, this research identifies 39 articles matching the study objectives. Findings of this research will help academics, technology companies and policymakers in understanding the factors influencing the process and proposing solutions to address these.