Accelerators and hurdles, and their mediating effects on electric vehicle adoption

Abstract

The sale of electric vehicles (EVs) in India was only 1.32% of all vehicle sales for FY 21–22. Through this study, the authors sought to contribute to the nascent field of research regarding the constructs influencing this low adoption. The study explores the existence of ‘early adopters’ among Indian consumers and investigates the direct and indirect impact of environmentalism on EV purchase propensity. The causal factors of the variation in the market shares of electric two-wheelers and electric cars in India's EV sales are addressed by estimating two Structural Equation Models encompassing latent variables and socio-demographics influencing their uptake. Technological Affinity emerged as the prime motivator and Concerns about Charging and Battery as the key hindrance to electric car purchase propensity. Environmental Consciousness positively affects both electric two-wheelers and electric car purchase propensities indirectly through Awareness about EVs & Green Policies, which itself demonstrates a positive influence in both cases. The results suggest that in India marketing electric cars as technologically superior cars rather than eco-friendly cars would be more effective. Concerns about Charging and Battery remained insignificant in the case of electric two-wheelers, lending an explanation to their greater market share despite inadequate infrastructure.