친환경 전기차 소비의 확대를 위해서는 일반 소비자들이 전기차를 어떻게 생각하는지에 대해서도 알아야하지만, 실제 전기차를 소유하고 이용하는 소비자들은 일반차 소비자들과는 어떻게 다른지, 전기차의 어떤 요인에 만족하고 불만족하는지, 구매 전과 구매 이후에 중요하다고 생각하는 속성들이 어떻게 달라지는 지 등 실제 소비자를 대상으로 한 이해도 필요하다. 특히 한국 시장에서 전기차 이용자의 소비 행태, 심리적 특성에 대한 연구는 매우 부족하다. 본 연구는 한국의 전기차 조기수용자들을 대상으로, 전기차 운행 현황을 분석하고, 여러 심리적 요인들에 대해 내연기관차 소비자 집단과 그 특성을 비교하고 차이점을 분석하였다. 본 연구 결과, 전기차 소비자는 일반차 소비자보다 친환경성향, 혁신성향, 전기차에 대한 주관적 지식 수준이 더 높았다. 또한 차에 대한 경험적/정서적 인식이 더 높았으며, 차량속성 중 연료효율성을 가장 중요한 속성으로 생각하는 비중이 높았다. 환경에 관심이 있는 사람들이 전기차를 구매하고 있지만, 연비가 전기차 구매 및 만족에 더 큰 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 일반 소비자들은 전기차 주행거리에 대해 불안감을 느끼고 있지만, 전기차를 실제 소유하여 이용하고 있는 소비자들은 주행거리에 대해 만족감을 느끼고 있었다. 이를 통해 볼 때 주행거리불안에 대한 정서적 예측 에러가 있음을 알 수 있었고, 오히려 전기차를 탈 때 일반차를 탈 때보다 주행거리가 더 늘어나는 리바운드 효과도 나타남을 알 수 있었다. 전기차 만족도에 가장 큰 영향을 미치는 변수는 전기차에 대한 주관적 지식, 주행거리만족, 구매이유_연비의 순으로 나타났다. 본 연구는 한국 전기차 조기수용자들의 특징을 분석하고, 친환경성향과 혁신성향의 상관관계를 새롭게 밝혔으며, 주행거리불안에 대한 정서적 예측 에러가 나타남을 보인 것에 의의가 있다.
In order for governments and companies to increase consumer adoption of electric vehicles, they need to gain a deep understanding of motivation for purchase, and how consumers perceive the potential risks of owning an electric vehicle. Thus far, most consumer studies on electric vehicles have focused on potential adopters of electric vehicles not actual owners: their environmental concern, purchase motivation, vehicle attribute requirements, and need for financial incentives. However, much additional insight on electric vehicle adoption can be obtained from studying current owners of electric vehicles. In this study, we compare and contrast the characteristics of electric vehicle owners and owners of traditional cars (i.e., internal combustion engine cars). The two groups are compared along personal dimensions such as environmental concern, innovativeness, and subjective knowledge about electric vehicles. We also examine the determinants of satisfaction and dissatisfaction in electric vehicle usage by their owners. In addition, we study to what extent consumers’ hopes and fears about electric vehicles prior to purchase is realized during actual use. Such psychological and behavioral studies of electric vehicles owners have rarely been carried out with South Korean consumers prior to this study. This study shows the attitude and usage behavior of early adopters of electric vehicles in South Korea and compares their psychological characteristics with those of traditional vehicle owners. We show that compared to traditional vehicle owners, electric vehicle owners have greater pro-environmental concern, innovativeness, and subjective knowledge about electric vehicles. They also placed greater importance on driving experience and fuel efficiency, compared to traditional car owners. Non-adopters view electric vehicles as having limited range, with the danger of being stranded when batteries run out. However, actual owners said that they were satisfied with the range of their electric vehicles. In fact, electric vehicle owners were shown to use their cars more than traditional car owners. This type of “rebound effect” is due to lower cost of fuel for electric vehicles. Such rebound behavior has been shown in other energy-saving devices in past studies. Overall, there seems to be “forecasting error” about what it would be like to own an electric vehicle and what it is actually experienced. Finally, we show that satisfaction with electric vehicle usage is affected by subjective knowledge about electric vehicles, satisfaction with vehicle range, and satisfaction with fuel costs. The study’s contribution is two-fold. First, it shows that early adopters of electric vehicles are not only motivated by altruistic motives of protecting the environment, but also by the need to be innovative and the desire to lower fuel costs. Second, it shows large differences in forecasting error regarding electric vehicle ownership and usage.