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Dispositions For Lexicographic Preferences Of Evironmental Goods: Integrating Economics, Psychology, And Ethics, Randall S. Rosenberger, George L. Peterson, Andrea Clarke, Thomas C. Brown

Regional Research Institute Working Papers

This paper combines the psychometric methods of paired comparisons and environmental disposition measurement to explain seemingly lexicographic behavior in choice experiments. A paired comparison experiment is developed that measures economic values using a choice set composed of public goods, private goods, and sums of money. The method provides a detailed map of each respondent’s stated preferences, among the choice set elements. Two treatments are used that differ only on the range of the dollar magnitudes – Treatment A ranges from$10 to $700. Treatment B ranges from $10 to $9,000. In either treatment, a proportion of the respondents potentially exhibit lexicographic …