The potential for quantitative sociological research on residential energy consumption in Denmark

In this paper, I begin with a description of how a sociological perspective can be employed to understand energy consumption while taking into account that energy consumption is embedded in everyday social practices. Next, I describe how newly available data enhances the potential of quantitative sociological analysis into energy consumption, enabling researchers in Denmark to use information on energy consumption derived from the energy-supply companies. Furthermore, I present a preliminary research design that employs both a quantitative sociological perspective and the newly available data on actual energy consumption. The research design contains a descriptive analysis of how energy demand differs between different types of households.
In my conclusion, I claim that quantitative sociological research on energy consumption has great potential for obtaining more knowledge on energy consumption by contributing with more generalizable results to the general discussion on how various households consume energy, extend the breadth of current research questions and provide better opportunities for analysis concerning impacts on energy consumption over time.