Sociological study of energy culture among housing and building construction activists

Nowadays, the problem of energy wastage is one of the most critical environmental challenges. According to research, household energy consumption in Iran is higher than the global average. Many researchers have only focused on the culture of consumers in residential units, While many times, the physical condition of the building leads to energy wastage. The physical condition of the building was created by the builders, engineers, and other factors (construction activists) before the settlement. The approach of this qualitative research was carried out with the grounded theory strategy. Semi-structured interviews have been conducted with construction activists until researchers reach theoretical saturation. Based on this, open, axial coding was done, and the core category was extracted from it. First, based on the relevant codes, the bases and conditions of neglecting building energy were divided into three parts: cognitive norms, material culture, and energy practices, along with their obstacles and facilitators. The research findings, focusing on the individual and organizational level, show that the level of knowledge and attitude of the activists has weakened the cognitive norms. This issue is especially noticeable in the lower areas of the city. Also, construction costs and customs have the highest effect on the type of activists' material culture. Energy procedures and material culture in the upper parts of Tehran have the most excellent facilitation in the energy culture of construction, and cognitive norms and material culture in the lower part of the city have less effect on the optimal energy culture of construction. Sanctions have led to the pressure of the trim to a medium level, and indifference to the energy consumption of the building has been achieved.