Peter C. Boxall

Stated Preference Approaches for Measuring Passive Use Values: Choice Experiments and Contingent Valuation

The measurement of passive use values has become an important issue in environmental economics. In this paper we examine an extension or variant of contingent valuation, the choice experiment, which employs a series of questions with more than two alternatives that are designed to elicit responses that allow the estimation of preferences over attributes of an environmental state. We also combine the information from choice experiments and contingent valuation to test for differences in preferences and error variances arising from the two methods. Our results show that choice experiments have considerable merit in measuring passive use values. Copyright 1998, Oxford University Press.

Understanding Heterogeneous Preferences in Random Utility Models: A Latent Class Approach

A finite mixture approach toconditional logit models is developed in whichlatent classes are used to promoteunderstanding of systematic heterogeneity. The model is applied to wilderness recreationin which a branded choice experiment involvingchoice of one park from a demand system wasadministered to a sample of recreationists. The basis of membership in the classes orsegments in the sample involved attitudinalmeasures of motivations for taking a trip, aswell as their stated preferences overwilderness park attributes. The econometricanalysis suggested that four classes of peopleexist in the sample. Using the model toexamine welfare measures of some hypotheticalpolicy changes identified markedly differentwelfare effects than the standard singlesegment model, and provided insight into thedifferential impact of alternative policies.

A comparison of stated preference methods for environmental valuation

This paper presents an empirical comparison of contingent valuation (CVM) and choice experiments which are used to value environmental quality changes. Both of these methods require individuals to state their preferences for environmental qualities. However, choice experiments differ from CVM in that environmental attributes are varied in an experimental design which requires respondents to make repeated choices between bundles of attributes. The empirical application involved the effect of environmental quality changes arising from forest management practices on recreational moose hunting values. Significant differences were found between the values derived from the two methods. However, detailed examination of the implied choice behaviour suggested that respondents ignored substitute recreation areas in the CVM question. Restricting the choice experiment model to consider only the one site where quality was varied, resulted in welfare estimates similar to the CVM model. This highlights the importance of substitutes in environmental valuation and suggests that choice experiments may be more appropriate than CVM in some cases.

Complexity in Choice Experiments: Choice of the Status Quo Alternative and Implications for Welfare Measurement

We examine the propensity of respondents to choose the status quo (SQ) or current situation alternative as a function of complexity in two separate state-of-the-world choice experiments. Complexity in each choice set was characterized as the number of single and multiple changes in levels of attributes from the current situation and the order of the choice task in the sequence of multiple tasks provided to respondents. We show that increasing complexity leads to increased choice of the SQ and that a respondent’s age and level of education also influenced this choice. We outline the effects of the alternate approaches for incorporating the SQ into welfare measurement. These findings have implications for the design of stated preference experiments, examining passive use values and for empirical analysis leading to welfare measurement.

The role of social psychological and social structural variables in environmental activism: an example of the forest sector☆

Dissatisfaction with natural resource management and policy is often manifested by engagement in activist behaviors aimed at influencing management and policy decisions. A study was undertaken to examine the relationship between value orientation, attitudes, knowledge, social structural and socialization variables, and environmental activism within the context of a cognitive hierarchy model. Data were collected from the general population of Alberta, Canada by mail survey in 1999. Support was found for a cognitive hierarchy model with value orientation being better predictors of attitudes than social structural or socialization variables. Attitudes toward forest management were associated with activism. Belonging to an environmental organization, however, was a better predictor of activism than social psychological or social structural variables. This suggests the need for a more complete model of activism that considers the interplay between social psychological variables and macro-factors such as the environmental movement in shaping attitudes and engagement in activist behaviors.

Participation in wildlife Conservation by birdwatchers

Abstract Decreasing revenues from traditional sources such as hunting license sales are causing wildlife management agencies to seek methods of raising revenue and generating support for wildlife conservation from nonconsumptive users. A mail survey was used to examine birdwatchers’ participation in wildlife conservation activities. Results show that birders made substantial contributions that increased with higher levels of birding experience. This study suggests that using volunteers, establishing cooperative agreements with private organizations, and recruiting birders in conserving private land for habitat may be acceptable contribution mechanisms for the birding constituency, and that it may be possible to design and market mechanisms for specific subgroups of birders.

Past Experience and Behavioral Choice Among Wilderness Users

Introduction Research in recreation choice behavior has provided insight into the experiences people seek from recreation, setting attributes that are important to recreation experiences, and factors that influence choice behavior (Stankey & McCool, 1985). In wilderness recreation, understanding the factors that influence site choice is important in redistributing use, in maintaining the isolation and solitude characteristics of the wilderness experience, and reducing user conflicts and congestion (Lucas, 1990). The amount of experience in a recreational activity or setting has been cited as one factor influencing site choice (e.g, Bryan, 1977; Virden & Schreyer, 1988; Williams & Huffman, 1986). Bryans (1977) theory of recreation specialization, of which past experience is one component, suggests that as individuals gain experience in an activity they progress through stages of development accompanied by changes in setting preferences, social group affiliation, and attitudes. This developmental approach assumes that individuals choose recreational settings that are consistent with their preferences and attitudes. However, constraints such as site availability, distance to substitute sites, costs, social pressures, and socioeconomic factors may intervene and limit the congruency between individual preference and actual site choice (Kuentzel & Heberlein, 1992; Watson, Roggenbuck, & Williams, 1991). While studies have examined the association between past experience and preferred recreational settings, little research examines whether differences in preferences translate into different recreation site choices (Kuentzel & Heberlein, 1992) and how site choice changes with experience. This paper extends the literature by assessing the influence of past experience on actual site choice. Specifically, we use a conceptual model of recreation choice behavior to examine the association between recreation site choice behavior, past experience, setting preferences, social factors, and constraints among wilderness users. Past Experience and Setting Preferences A common tenet in recreation site choice is that individuals engage in recreational activities at sites where the preferred combination of physical, social, and managerial settings are available to produce satisfying experiences (Driver & Brown, 1978). However, several factors can affect preferences or intervene to affect site choice. One factor associated with setting preferences is the amount of experience an individual has in an activity or setting. Experience has been included as a component in various concepts including recreation specialization (e.g., Bryan, 1977), experience use history (e.g., Schreyer, Lime, & Williams, 1984), and indices of past experience (e.g., Hammitt & McDonald, 1983; Watson & Niccollucci, 1992). Bryan (1977) proposed the concept of recreation specialization to explain differences in observed behaviors among anglers. Specialization is usually considered as a multidimensional construct with behavioral and affective aspects of which past experience is a strong component. Bryan hypothesized that the amount of experience with and commitment to an activity follows a sequence with some individuals progressing through sequential stages of development. As individuals progress along this continuum they become specialized in their behaviors and their attitudes and preferences change. Thus, more experienced users prefer more natural types of conditions and less management intervention. In his study of anglers, Bryan observed that as participants became specialized they joined a leisure social world of fellow anglers who held similar beliefs and attitudes and engaged in similar behaviors. Furthermore, attitudes shifted from a consumptive orientation to preservation and the setting of the activity became more important. He concluded that anglers at different stages of specialization choose different settings in which to fish and that these settings can be predicted by knowing the level of specialization. …

Valuing aboriginal artifacts: a combined revealed-stated preference approach

Abstract This paper examines the value of unique aboriginal cultural resources using joint revealed-stated preference methods. Our methodology exploits knowledge of previous choices from both the revealed and stated preference data to account for state dependence. We also incorporate procedures to address correlation among the data sources. The empirical application involves the discovery of aboriginal rock paintings along wilderness canoe routes in eastern Manitoba, Canada. A 4-year study of wilderness recreation trips included an SP experiment in which canoeists were asked if they would change their site choices in response to the presence of two types of rock paintings: a “pristine” painting and another spoiled by vandals. Mean welfare measures for the presence of “pristine” paintings at two canoe routes were about

Forestry, economics and the environment

61 and

Modeling Recreation Demand in a Poisson System of Equations: An Analysis of the Impact of International Exchange Rates

77 per trip, respectively. Vandalized pictographs are worth considerably less.