nep-dcm New Economics Papers
on Discrete Choice Models
Issue of 2019‒02‒04
eleven papers chosen by
Edoardo Marcucci
Università degli studi Roma Tre

  1. A meta-analysis of the importance of the driving range in consumers’ preference studies for battery electric vehicles By Danielis, Romeo; Scorrano, Mariangela; Giansoldati, Marco; Rotaris, Lucia
  2. Public preferences for livestock presence in pasture landscape: A latent class analysis of a discrete choice experiment in Germany By Schaak, Henning; Mußhoff, Oliver
  3. The Economic Value of Ecosystem Conservation: A Discrete Choice Experiment at the Taravo River Basin in Corsica By Pascal Da Costa; Daniel Hernandez
  4. Redistribution in Whose Favor? Preferences with Regard to Nationality and Type of Beneficiaries By Neustadt, Ilja; Zweifel, Peter
  5. Public Preferences for Health Gains and Cures: A Discrete Choice Experiment By Hampson, G.; Mott, D. Devlin, N.; Shah, K.
  6. An empirical examination of reducing status quo bias in heterogeneous populations: evidence from the South African water sector By Murwirapachena, Genius; Dikgang, Johane
  7. Employer and Employee Preferences for Worker Benefits: Evidence from a Matched Survey on the Bangladesh Informal Sector By Kumar, Krishna B.; Mahmud, Minhaj; Nataraj, Shanthi; Cho, Yoon Y.
  8. ‘Quality food’ for cultural policies. Quality attributes in the non-market stated-preference based valuation of cultural goods By Aleksandra Wiśniewska
  9. Diversifying Electricity Customer Choice: REVing Up the New York Energy Vision for Polycentric Innovation By Nyangon, Joseph; Byrne, John
  10. La importancia de las etiquetas EPC sobre las preferencias residenciales: un análisis para Barcelona By Marmolejo-Duarte Carlos; García-Ramos Rosa; Encinas-Pino Felipe
  11. The economics of participatory value evaluation By Thijs Dekker; Paul (P.R.) Koster; Niek Mouter

  1. By: Danielis, Romeo; Scorrano, Mariangela; Giansoldati, Marco; Rotaris, Lucia
    Abstract: We perform a meta-analysis of the studies that evaluate the importance attributed by the consumers to the driving range of the Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs). The paper updates and extends the paper by Dimitropoulos et al. (2013), including primary studies up to the year 2018. It tests whether the conclusions drawn by Dimitropoulos et al. (2013) still hold true given the many changes that occurred in the last years concerning BEVS’ uptake in the market, growing consumers’ direct and indirect experience with electric cars, vehicles’ increased range, and growing diffusion of the charging infrastructure. We carried out two analyses: a) the estimation of the summary effect size of the driving range utility coefficient, and b) a meta-regression of the willingness to pay for a 1-km increase in the BEVs’ driving range. The main findings are that: a) the importance attributed to the BEV’s range by the consumers has not decreased; b) there is a very large dispersion of the estimates around the mean values, implying that there is a large heterogeneity due to differences in respondents’ needs, vehicle segments and modelling techniques. The meta-regression allowed us to further explore and test statistically these conclusions.
    Date: 2019
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sit:wpaper:19_2&r=all
  2. By: Schaak, Henning; Mußhoff, Oliver
    Abstract: Biodiversity, landscape aesthetics and grazing livestock have significant relevance for agricultural production, however they are rarely considered in public landscape preferences research. This paper studies public preferences for pasture usage by the means of a discrete choice experiment using a sample of 449 individuals from Germany. Graphical representations of the choice sets are used to assess the preferences for the presence of livestock and typical pasture landscape elements. To account for preference heterogeneity, the paper utilises a latent-class logit model. Four different latent classes can be identified. The results show different preferences between the latent classes, not only in terms of the magnitude of the estimated parameters, but also in terms of the parameter signs. This indicates that there are multiple types of preferred pasture landscapes. Furthermore, the paper discusses the influence of sociodemographic variables on the class membership probabilities and presents the calculated willingness to pay for the landscape attributes and the livestock visibility.
    Date: 2019
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:daredp:1901&r=all
  3. By: Pascal Da Costa (LGI - Laboratoire Génie Industriel - EA 2606 - CentraleSupélec); Daniel Hernandez (CEREMA - CEREMA: Center for Risks, Environment, Mobility and Planning, Direction Territoriale Méditerranée, FRANCE.)
    Abstract: An economic valuation of some of the ecosystem services provided at the Taravo river basin was conducted, using a stated preferences approach. On average, respondents were willing to pay up to 128 Euros per year for the enhancement of the ecosystem services selected for this choice experiment. This result is in line with those obtained in other studies applying the same approach. This Choice Experiment is part of more comprehensive assessment, which will be published later, and expands the analysis to other ecosystem services and takes into account their biophysical aspect as well.
    Keywords: Discrete Choice Experiment,Stated Preferences Methods,Ecosystem Services,Economic Valuation,Willingness to Pay
    Date: 2019–01–07
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-01971681&r=all
  4. By: Neustadt, Ilja; Zweifel, Peter
    Abstract: In this paper, we elicit preferences for the allocation of income redistribution to different uses through a Discrete Choice Experiment performed with a representative sample of Swiss citizens. The total desired amount of income redistribution is estimated as a share of disposable income. Further, we estimate marginal willingness-to-pay values for recipients' nationalities (Swiss, citizens of western European countries, citizens of other countries) as well as their types (old-age pensioners, people with ill health, the unemployed, working poor, and families with children). Swiss citizens are found to have a positive willingness to pay for a reallocation of social expenditure in favor of themselves or Western European citizens to the detriment of citizens of other countries, who are perceived to be culturally distant.
    Keywords: Income redistribution, preferences, willingness to pay, discrete choice experiments, conjoint analysis, social status, immigration debate, insurance motive.
    JEL: C35 C93 D63 H29
    Date: 2018–11–21
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91766&r=all
  5. By: Hampson, G.; Mott, D. Devlin, N.; Shah, K.
    Abstract: Whether or not society values curative therapies more highly (or less highly) than the sum of the iterative improvements that might come from conventional therapy has been highlighted as an important area for research. The aim of this research was thus to explore society's preferences across curative and non-curative therapies and large and small health gains, via a discrete choice experiment. We find that respondents value health gains highly but do not appear to place additional value on the treatment being a "cure" per se. However, we use a very specific definition of a cure (treatments that restore patients to normal life expectancy and full quality of life), and therefore suggest that our results are taken with caution. Treatments that offer sizeable health gains, but do not necessarily restore health to that of a 'healthy' individual, would no doubt be of significant social value given the preferences of our respondents for larger health gains. This reflects the benefits offered by some advanced therapy medicinal products, which have the potential to result in substantial health benefits but may not entirely restore patients to the health of a disease-free individual. This study was funded by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.
    Keywords: Measuring and valuing outcomes
    JEL: I1
    Date: 2019–01–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ohe:conrep:002108&r=all
  6. By: Murwirapachena, Genius; Dikgang, Johane
    Abstract: Choice experiments typically include a status quo option, which often describes the current scenario. This is to secure the validity and applicability of choice experiments. People have a propensity to choose what they are familiar with, despite being presented with alternatives that seem better (i.e. the ‘status quo effect’). Various experiments have reliably demonstrated this effect. The tendency to prefer the current scenario disproportionally does not mimic real-life preferences; therefore, status quo bias is undesirable. In a split sample framework, we test for the effects of reducing status quo bias by considering a heterogeneous sample. We use generalised mixed logit models to carry out the tests. The tests reveal that presenting each split sample with a partially relevant status quo significantly reduces the status quo bias problem.
    Keywords: choice experiments, heterogeneous, generalised mixed logit, status quo bias.
    JEL: H41 Q25 Q51
    Date: 2018–12–07
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91549&r=all
  7. By: Kumar, Krishna B. (RAND); Mahmud, Minhaj (Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS)); Nataraj, Shanthi (RAND); Cho, Yoon Y. (World Bank)
    Abstract: Informality is ubiquitous in the labor markets of developing countries, and requiring that firms formally register, pay taxes, and provide employee benefits stipulated in labor regulations to reduce such informality is challenging. However, a matched survey on employer-employee preferences suggests that mutually beneficial job benefits exist, and that encouraging their adoption might be feasible. Carefully designed discrete choice experiments on combinations of benefits related to compensation, leave and termination policies, working conditions, and accident insurance, along with incentives for employers, reveal the relative values that workers and employers attach to each benefit. The results show that workers tend to value advance notice for job termination and accident insurance, and that employers are not averse to providing these benefits. In contrast, workers find long working hours without overtime compensation to be highly undesirable, whereas many employers are generally unwilling to provide shorter hours or overtime pay unless they face the threat of fines or are offered substantial incentives for doing so. Our findings therefore suggest that encouraging the provision of termination notice and accident insurance may be relatively easy, but that increasing compliance with legal limits on working hours and overtime compensation is likely to require increased enforcement or substantial incentives.
    Keywords: informality, worker benefits, discrete choice experiments
    JEL: J32 J81
    Date: 2019–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12064&r=all
  8. By: Aleksandra Wiśniewska (Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw)
    Abstract: Evidence-based policies require well-established research and reliable data. One of the major difficulties in delivering ‘good quality food’ for cultural policies lies in measuring culture. Stated preference based non-market valuation is one of the privileged tools to reveal the benefits cultural goods deliver to the society for cost-benefit analysis. The prevalent problem in this kind of research are poorly defined, ambiguous goods. The challenge lies in describing their quality attributes. The article’s goal is to review the hitherto uses of quality measurements of arts and culture in stated preference based non-market valuation research, mostly dedicated to performing arts and cultural heritage.
    Keywords: quality measurement, stated preferences, non-market valuation, performing arts, cultural heritage, cultural policy
    JEL: Z1 Z11 Z18 D61
    Date: 2019
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:war:wpaper:2019-03&r=all
  9. By: Nyangon, Joseph; Byrne, John
    Abstract: Electric utility business models are changing to integrate new technologies and distributed energy resources (DER). Diversifying energy mix and customer choices are both novel and useful in understanding key drivers of this transformation, including distribution system planning and customer-service options. Practical implementation of these solutions, how- ever, shows that without proper planning, energy diversiication could come at very high social and economic costs. For example, regulators have been slow in implementing policy, regulatory, and business model constructs that promote customer choice to animate high levels of grid reliability and resiliency. Equally important is how viable existing utility business models are to navigating transformation processes, including strategic resource management, revenue model, customer interface, and value propositions. This chapter discusses our use of the Hamel business model to ofer strategic analysis of Reforming the Energy Vision (REV), which is aimed at decarbonizing New York’s energy sector and increasing customer choice and control. Speciically, we build from existing literature to argue that implementing distribution management systems (DMS) in which customer choice and DERs are prominent requires a shared or ‘polycentric,’ networked business- model innovations that build on competitive and comparative advantages of existing institutions to meet the growing demand for electricity services and utility strategic goals.
    Keywords: reforming the energy vision, distributed energy resources, business model, polycentric innovation, utility choice management, Hamel framework
    JEL: K23 O31 O33 P48 R11 R28
    Date: 2018–09–09
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91486&r=all
  10. By: Marmolejo-Duarte Carlos; García-Ramos Rosa; Encinas-Pino Felipe
    Abstract: En España la Directiva Europea de Eficiencia Energética se ha traspuesto con retraso y ha coincidido de pleno con la crisis inmobiliaria. Por tanto, el análisis de las preferencias de los hogares en relación a la eficiencia energética medida a través de las energy performance certificates es difícil. Para salvar este escollo, en este trabajo utilizamos métodos afiliados a las preferencias declaradas para analizar hasta qué punto la eficiencia energética constituye un atributo relevante en la elección residencial. Los resultados sugieren que si los hogares son informados sobre las repercusiones económicas y ambientales en unidades ilustrativas comprensibles entonces es posible que la política energética tenga los efectos esperados en el mercado inmobiliario; y, por ende, que se forme una sobredisposición a pagar por las viviendas más eficientes.
    Keywords: análisis conjunto basado en la elección; Barcelona; Choice-based Conjoint analysis; Eficiência Energética; Energy Efficiency; energy performance certificates; mercado residencial; Residential Real Estate Market
    JEL: R3
    Date: 2017–09–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lre:wpaper:lares_2017_paper_22&r=all
  11. By: Thijs Dekker (University of Leeds); Paul (P.R.) Koster (John Stuart Mill College); Niek Mouter (Technical University Delft)
    Abstract: This paper develops a novel approach to the economic evaluation of public policies: participatory value evaluation (PVE). PVE involves citizens directly in decisions of the government, taking into account governmental and individual budget constraints. Citizens receive reliable information on social impacts and can choose the best portfolio of projects according to their social preferences. This paper develops the economic and econometric theoretical framework for fixed budget and flexible budget PVE experiments which allows us to directly measure the change in social welfare for investments in water infrastructure in The Netherlands.
    Keywords: participatory value evaluation; cost-benefit assessment; welfare analysis; discrete-continuous choice models
    JEL: H43 C35 C91 D63 D71
    Date: 2019–01–27
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tin:wpaper:20190008&r=all

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