This study recognizes that households in developing countries cooking needs cannot be satisfied by one particular stove design, instead, several fuels and cooking processes are required to complete single meal preparation. We show that the energy ladder is still sufficient to explain multiple fuel use and stove and that the use of the ‘fuel or stove staking’ metaphor was unnecessary. Instead, we propose a metaphor ‘fuel and stove balancing’ to explain how the uptake of single to multiple fuels or stoves happens gradually, through upwards and downwards movement on the ladder. The author further notes that policies aimed at enhancing the adoption of energy-efficient, less polluting fuels, stoves, and cooking practices need to be aligned to the realities of household multiple uses of fuels and stoves.
Policies aimed at enhancing adoption of energy efficient, less polluting fuels, stoves and cooking practices need to be aligned to the realities of household multiple uses of fuels and stoves. In this paper we assess energy ladder model by using large nationwide survey data of 3665 Kenyan households collected in 2009. We show that the energy ladder is still sufficient to explain multiple fuel use and stove, and that the use of ‘fuel or stove staking’ metaphor was unnecessarily. Instead, we propose a metaphor ‘fuel and stove balancing’ to explain how uptake of single to multiple fuels or stoves happens gradually, through upwards and downwards movement on the ladder. Factors that influence stove balancing go beyond socio-economic and demographic characteristics to include stove type technology, markets, and financial factors. These factors are systematical analyzed using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT-2) framework that is based on seven constructs of technology adoption. They include performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation, price value and habit.
