Understanding Diffusion Barriers in Rural Clean Heating: A Resident Perspective on Centralized GSHP in Two Chinese Villages

To reduce carbon emissions from rural household heating, China has promoted clean-heating transitions across northern regions, including centralized ground source heat pump (GSHP) systems as alternatives to coal. Despite sustained policy support, further diffusion remains limited. This study examines two adjacent villages: one with an operating centralized GSHP project and one with prolonged exposure to it but no retrofit initiation. To examine this situation from the user side, this study applies a Risk-integrated Technology Acceptance Model (RITAM), extending the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and informed by Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory, to compare resident perceptual structures. Based on field survey data from Shanxi Province and multi-group path analysis, the results reveal structural differences in how the two groups form use intentions and respond to key perceptual drivers. Non-adopters show greater sensitivity to lifestyle compatibility and perceived relative advantage in shaping perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, but report lower evaluations along these pathways. This sensitivity–level mismatch suggests that prolonged exposure alone may not resolve perceptual barriers to further acceptance. In settings where early adopters and exposed non-adopters coexist, these findings suggest that diffusion support should help residents experience and verify the relative advantages of centralized GSHP while addressing shared and group-specific perceptual priorities.