Economics Commons^™

Spatial Dimensions Of Water Quality Value In New England River Networks, Robert J. Johnston, Klaus Moeltner, Seth Peery, Tom Ndebele, Zhenyu Yao, Stefano Crema, Wilfred M. Wollheim, Elena Besedin

Economics

Households’ willingness to pay (WTP) for water quality improvements—representing their economic value—depends on where improvements occur. Households often hold higher values for improvements close to their homes or iconic areas. Are there other areas where improvements might hold high value to individual households, do effects on WTP vary by type of improvement, and can these areas be identified even if they are not anticipated by researchers? To answer these questions, we integrated a water quality model and map-based, interactive choice experiment to estimate households’ WTP for water quality improvements throughout a river network covering six New England states. The choice …

Biophysical Measures To Support Analysis And Communication Of Existence Values, James Boyd, Robert Johnston, Paul Ringold

Economics

A recent focus of ecosystem services research has been on the definition of biophysical outcomes and measures most closely linked to social welfare. There is a particular need to identify biophysical outcomes corresponding to existence values. (Values associated with existence apart from any current or future use.) We review economic and ecological evidence to answer two key questions: First, what are ideal characteristics of linking indicators for existence values? Linking indicators should be: understandable, subject to direct sensory perception, represented at relevant temporal and spatial scales, comprehensive, and quantifiable in a repeatable manner. Second, what types of ecosystem outcomes are …

Poultry Producer's Willingness To Invest In On-Farm Carcass Disposal, V. L. Campbell, J. M. Thompson, J. L. Apriesnig, D. L. Pendell, G. T. Tonsor

Michigan Tech Publications

Foreign animal diseases (FAD) can cause substantial economic losses in production, consumption, and the supply chain. These diseases are typically highly pathogenic and lead to disruptions in normal business practices and to demands for higher investment in biosecurity practices. For poultry producers this can lead to changes in bird pick-ups, chick placements, and length of out time on farms as well as changes in day-to-day operations. When an FAD is reported, poultry producers that rely on off-premises carcass disposal (e.g., renderers or landfills) may be required to develop on-farm disposal capacity (e.g., incinerators or burial) rapidly if their operation falls …

Willingness To Pay Of Urban Households For The Conservation Of Natural Resources And Cultural Heritage In A Neighboring Rural Area: A Cvm Study, Rosalina Palanca-Tan

Economics Department Faculty Publications

Koronadal households benefit from Lake Sebu’s natural resources (lakes, waterfalls, rivers and springs, forest land, agricultural land) and cultural heritage (arts and handicrafts such as T’nalak weaving, brass casting, beadwork, and wood carving; music and dances; festivals; and beliefs and traditions of the T’boli indigenous tribe) in terms of recreation, good image and sense of pride, tourism income generation, the supply of high-quality tilapia, agricultural products supply, potential hydroelectric power source, biodiversity, and climate change mitigation. These benefits are integrated into a single estimate using the contingent valuation method. In the study, a sample of 524 Koronadal households was asked …

Australian Consumers Are Willing To Pay For The Health Star Rating Front-Of-Pack Nutrition Label, Sheri L. Cooper, Lucy M. Butcher, Simone D. Scagnelli, Johnny Lo, Maria M. Ryan, Amanda Devine, Therese A. O’Sullivan

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. The Australia and New Zealand Ministerial Forum on Food Regulation has supported the recommendations set out in the 2019 Health Star Rating System Five Year Review Report. Specifically, the forum supported, in principle, Recommendation 9, to mandate the Health Star Rating if clear uptake targets were not achieved while the system is voluntary. Given that mandatory labelling is being considered, it is important to investigate how much consumers value the Health Star Rating in order to understand potential consumer uptake and inform industry. The aim of this study was to assess …

The Spillover Effect Of Marketing Discolored Beef On Consumer Preferences For Nondiscolored Beef, Ryan Feuz, F. Bailey Norwood, Ranjith Ramanathan

Applied Economics Faculty Publications

Consumers prefer bright, cherry-red retail beef. Retailers often mark down the price of discolored beef for quick sale. However, following this practice could result in a net loss of revenue if consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for nondiscolored beef is negatively affected by the presence of discolored beef in the consumer choice set. Through a hypothetical online survey and a controlled in-person experiment, we determine that marketing discolored beef together with nondiscolored beef increases most consumers’ evaluation of, but not their WTP for, nondiscolored beef.

Consumer Perceptions Of Food Safety And Preferences For Food Safety Interventions, Kofi Britwum

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation consists of three essays that investigate consumers’ response to technologies that mitigate food safety risks: cattle vaccines against E. coli and direct-fed microbials.

The first essay examines the influence of information framing and issue involvement on perceptions of the two food safety technologies. This essay also examines the role of issue involvement on food safety perceptions. A hypothetical survey which includes six information treatments was developed, and targeted a representative, random sample of U.S consumers. Participants were exposed to general information about E. coli and the two food safety technologies, a gain-framed message, a loss-framed message, a media …

The Economic Value Of Forest Park Ecosystem Services: Results Of Five Focus Groups Conducted In Spring 2016, Randall A. Bluffstone, Pablo Barreyro, Jenny Dempsey Stein, Cody Kent, Antonia Machado

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objective: This initial phase of research lays the foundation for a survey using contingent valuation (CV) and choice experiment (CE) methods. We asked select Portland residents what they care about most in Forest Park, their willingness to pay (WTP) for improving ecosystem services and how they generally think about the value of those goods and services. These results will help us narrow the experimental design of the forthcoming CV/CE study.

Approach: We conducted a focus group in each of Portland’s 5 “quadrants.” We chose each location - Skyline, St. John’s, Cully, Foster-Powell and Hillsdale - based on either its proximity …

Contingent Valuation Studies And Health Policy, Matthew D. Adler

All Faculty Scholarship

This short comment argues that both cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) should be seen as imperfect tools for evaluating health policy. This is true, not only for extra-welfarists, but even for welfarists, since both CBA and CEA can deviate from the use of social welfare functions (SWF). A simple model is provided to illustrate the divergence between CBA, CEA, and the SWF approach. With this insight in mind, the comment considers the appropriate role of contingent-valuation studies. For full text, please see: http://www.law.upenn.edu/cf/faculty/madler/workingpapers/578A59B6d01.pdf.

Bridging The Gap Between The Field And The Lab: Environmental Goods, Policy Maker Input, And Consequentiality, Christian A. Vossler, Mary F. Evans

CMC Faculty Publications and Research

This paper explores the criterion validity of stated preference methods through experimental referenda that capture key characteristics of a stated preference survey for a proposed environmental program. In particular, we investigate whether advisory referenda, where participant votes have either known or unknown weight in the policy decision, can elicit values comparable to that of a standard, incentive-compatible referendum. When participants regard their votes as consequential, our results suggest there is no elicitation bias with advisory referenda. For advisory referenda where participants view their votes as inconsequential, and for purely hypothetical referenda, we observe elicitation bias.

Risk Based Urban Watershed Management Under Conflicting Objectives, Vladimir Novotny, David E. Clark, Robert Griffin, Douglas Booth

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

Ecological impairment and flooding caused by urbanization can be expressed numerically by calculating the risks throughout the watershed (floodplain) and along the main stems of the streams. The risks can be evaluated in terms of the present and/or future. This article describes the methodologies for ascertaining the risks in the Geographical Information Systems (GIS) environment. The objectives of urban flood controls and ecological preservation/restoration of urban waters are often conflicting and, in the past, the sole emphasis on flood control led to destruction of habitat and deterioration of water quality. An optimal solution to these two problems may be achieved …

Maximum Score Estimates Of The Determinants Of Residential Mobility: Implications For The Value Of Residential Attachment And Neighborhood Amenities, Timothy J. Bartik, J. S. Butler, Jin-Tan Liu

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

This paper examines the determinants of the decision of low-income renters to move out of their current dwelling. Maximum score estimation is shown to be superior to ordinary discrete choice estimation techniques (probit, logit) for this problem, and for similar discrete choices that require revering a previously optimal decision. The estimation reveals psychological costs from moving for typical low income renters of at least 8% of their income ; these costs are even higher for older, longer tenure, or minority households. Policies that displace low income renters will have large social costs. In addition, the estimation results are used to …