What’s in a stove? A review of the user preferences in improved stove designs
Annelise Gill‐Wiehl, Tom A. R. Price, Daniel M. Kammen
Abstract
2.9 Billion people lack access to secure and affordable clean cooking fuels and technologies. Numerous studies and initiatives have attempted to design and implement more efficient stoves, but often these efforts fail as the combination of stove design, fuel access, or management issues does not meet the cook’s needs or preferences. This review analyzes the stove functions, characteristics, or features that households value in their cook stove. From these data, we explore user preferences, which we catalog within the Technology Acceptance Model along seven dimensions that arose in the literature: technical design and stove operation, fuel characteristics, technical details or features, kitchen space, household food and taste demands, household schedules, and social and cultural aspects. Overall, households need a stove that meets their large cooking demands and can perform a range of cooking functions at a range of cooking speeds. In order to meet these requirements, we advocate that private and public stove programs bundle stove models to meet all the households’ needs to ensure both adoption and consistent, exclusive use.