Abstract
Several global studies have investigated domestic water consumption, with the aim of identifying and understanding the factors that influence to a greater or lesser extent this essential activity for our well-being. Traditionally, most of this research has focused on examining the impact of economic, demographic and climatic factors, and more recently, aspects related to urban planning and even psychology. However, there are still very few studies that have been interested in evaluating in depth the influence that the management model of the supplying company may have on residential water consumption. In this study, focused on the Mediterranean region of Catalonia for the period 2017-2022, using data for the domestic sector at the municipal level and following the statistical mediation method proposed by Baron and Kenny, we propose a set of three multiple linear regression models. The objective is to assess how the business management model can affect domestic water consumption, as well as the influence that the price of water can exert on the dynamics analysed. The results of these estimations indicate the effective influence of corporate management, namely it is concluded that the shift from indirect to direct management leads to an increase in household water consumption. In contrast, the analysis also reveals that the price of water has no effect on this analysed influence. Knowing this information in the current situation of water scarcity, this study can help municipal authorities in their decision to choose between one model or another of water supply management.
Keywords: water; domestic consumption; linear regression model; Catalonia; management model.
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