Opportunistic behavior and discrimination in the mexican solar photovoltaic market: An audit experiment
通过审计实验，研究墨西哥住宅太阳能光伏市场中供应商基于性别、社会经济地位等因素的歧视性定价行为，发现女性和中高收入客户面临超6%的额外收费，这可能阻碍绿色技术推广。
This paper presents an empirical analysis of supply-side discrimination in the green technology market, with implications for policy optimization in emerging economies. We conduct an audit experiment using a messenger-based approach to investigate price discrimination and market behaviors in Mexico’s residential distributed solar photovoltaic (DPV) market. By using randomized fictitious customer profiles that vary by gender, socioeconomic status (SES), prior DPV knowledge, and access to external financing, we assess how these factors influence provider responses to quote requests. Our findings indicate that women and medium- to high-SES customers face significant overcharges, with combined surcharges exceeding 6% in some cases. Evidence of discriminatory practices based on product knowledge and access to financing is less robust. Oversizing of capacity by providers relative to the optimal size seems to be a common practice, although evidence of discrimination in this regard is rather weak. Discriminatory practices may reduce the cost-effectiveness and accessibility of DPV systems, ultimately hindering the impact of programs designed to promote green technology adoption. Addressing these biases is essential for improving market efficiency and enhancing the effectiveness of green technology initiatives aimed at promoting broader adoption across diverse populations. • Women and high-SES customers face price discrimination; overcharges exceed 3%. • Surcharges for medium/high-SES female customers rise above 6%. • Less robust evidence for discrimination based on prior product knowledge or external financing. • Sellers often oversize system capacity relative to the optimal net present value. • Evidence of discrimination regarding system capacity oversizing is relatively weak.