To assess whether consumer attitudes about energy efficiency had changed as a result of 2001's price increases, concerns about power reliability, and the ultimate outcome of energy deregulation, Primen conducted a survey about attitudes and behaviors related to the efficiency of recent or planned appliance and household heating and air conditioning purchases.

We interviewed 508 U.S. households to determine the importance of various appliance attributes in the buying decision, how energy prices affect attitudes about efficiency, and preferred sources used for information about appliances. Among findings is that for recent purchases, about three-quarters of consumers say that energy efficiency was a very important consideration, although attributes such as fuel type, initial price, and availability ranked just about as high. A larger percentage of consumers believe that energy efficiency will be very important for future purchases.