Techies or Environmentalists? How Presumptions about EV-Owners Shape the Market

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Most of the research on early adopters focuses on two self-identities that correspond to purchasing electric vehicles:
1)     The environmentalist identity, and
2)     The so-called car-authority identity
The environmentalist identity describes people with a pro-environmental orientation as part of their lifestyle and part of their self-image. The car-authority identity describes people who are experts on cars. These types of early adopters, the ones that are mainly technology-driven, don’t really care about the environmental benefits of EVs. They mainly care about the technical attributes of the vehicles. I, personally, have encountered both types of identities by talking to EV owners. But from my personal impression, there seem to be more car-authority types than environmentalists amongst EV buyers. What do you think, what are your experiences? I would love to hear about your thoughts. Send an e-mail! Also, let me know if you have to add a type of identity to this list. I, for example, hope that soon the identity of being very responsible with money and expenditures will be the type of identity that is associated with electric vehicles. 
Contact InformationE-Mail: electric-vehicle-podcast@outlook.com
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References mentioned in the Episode[1]E. H. Noppers, K. Keizer, J. W. Bolderdijk, and L. Steg, “The adoption of sustainable innovations: Driven by symbolic and environmental motives,” Global Environmental Change, vol. 25, pp. 52–62, Mar. 2014.
[2]E. Graham-Rowe et al., “Mainstream consumers driving plug-in battery-electric and plug-in hybrid electric cars: A qualitative analysis of responses and evaluations,” Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, vol. 46, no. 1, pp. 140–153, Jan. 2012.
[3]Z. Rezvani, J. Jansson, and J. Bodin, “Advances in consumer electric vehicle adoption research: A review and research agenda,” Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, vol. 34, pp. 122–136, Jan. 2015.
More References[1]S. Bamberg and G. Möser, “Twenty years after Hines, Hungerford, and Tomera: A new meta-analysis of psycho-social determinants of pro-environmental behaviour,” Journal of Environmental Psychology, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 14–25, Mar. 2007.
[2]G. Schuitema, J. Anable, S. Skippon, and N. Kinnear, “The role of instrumental, hedonic and symbolic attributes in the intention to adopt electric vehicles,” Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, vol. 48, pp. 39–49, Feb. 2013.
[3]B. Lane and S. Potter, “The adoption of cleaner vehicles in the UK: exploring the consumer attitude–action gap,” Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 15, no. 11–12, pp. 1085–1092, Jan. 2007.
[4]S. Skippon and M. Garwood, “Responses to battery electric vehicles: UK consumer attitudes and attributions of symbolic meaning following direct experience to reduce psychological distance,” Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, vol. 16, no. 7, pp. 525–531, Oct. 2011.
[5]B. Vandecasteele and M. Geuens, “Motivated Consumer Innovativeness: Concept, measurement, and validation,” International Journal of Research in Marketing, vol. 27, no. 4, pp. 308–318, Dec. 2010.
[6]J. Axsen, J. TyreeHageman, and A. Lentz, “Lifestyle practices and pro-environmental technology,” Ecologi

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