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Although the adoption of electrified vehicles (EVs) has been widely studied, less is known about their continued use, which is essential for achieving sustainable urban mobility and long-term decarbonization goals. This study integrates Value–Belief–Norm theory and Expectation Confirmation Theory to explain continuance intention among hybrid and battery electric vehicle users, focusing on post-adoption psychological mechanisms that support sustained engagement with electrified mobility. Survey data from 434 Spanish EV owners were analyzed using PLS-SEM, complemented by Pathmox analysis to explore user heterogeneity. The results show that altruistic and biospheric values positively influence awareness of consequences, ascription of responsibility, and personal norms, which in turn enhance expectation confirmation and continuance intention. Expectation confirmation emerged as the strongest predictor of continuance intention, highlighting the critical role of positive usage experiences in consolidating sustainable mobility behaviors beyond initial adoption. The heterogeneity analysis reveals distinct user profiles with different psychological drivers of continued EV use: older and long-distance drivers rely more strongly on stable moral commitments reinforced by satisfactory experiences, whereas younger and newer users are guided more by exploratory motivations or ecological ideals, with weaker dependence on experiential confirmation. These findings underline the importance of moving beyond one-size-fits-all approaches in urban mobility policies and suggest that differentiated communication, infrastructure planning, and user engagement strategies are needed to foster long-term commitment to electrified vehicles as a cornerstone of sustainable city development.
Higueras-Castillo et al. (Mon,) studied this question.