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on Resource Economics |
| By: | Campos-Mercade, Pol (Department of Economics, Lund University); Ek, Claes (University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics); Söderberg, Magnus (Griffith University, Department of Accounting, Finance and Economics); Schneider, Florian (University of Copenhagen, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Standard economic theory assumes that consumers ignore the externalities they create, such as emissions from burning fossil fuels and generating waste. In an incentivized study (N = 3, 718), we find that most people forgo substantial gains to avoid imposing negative externalities on others. Using administrative data on household waste, we show a clear link between such prosociality and waste behavior: prosociality predicts lower residual waste generation and higher waste sorting. Prosociality also predicts survey-reported pro-environmental behaviors such as lowering indoor temperature, limiting air travel, and consuming eco-friendly products. These findings highlight the importance of considering social preferences in environmental policy. |
| Keywords: | social preferences; prosociality; environmental behaviors; externalities |
| JEL: | D01 D62 Q53 |
| Date: | 2025–05–20 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:lunewp:2025_006 |
| By: | Laetitia Dillenseger; Claire Mouminoux |
| Abstract: | Creating a sustainable society necessitates policies that foster human well-being and encourage individuals to engage in pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) aimed at reducing their environmental footprint. However, the compatibility of these goals remains uncertain. While pro-environmental behavior often correlates positively with individuals’ well-being, the causal relationship between such actions and hedonic well-being (HWB) remains unclear. Similarly, the influence of subjective well-being (SWB) on PEB warrants further investigation. Based on a field experiment, supplemented by online surveys, in which French university students (n=393) could participate in a paid or unpaid volunteer waste collection, or donate to an environmental association, according to random allocation to different treatment groups, we find evidence of a virtuous loop between pro-environmental actions and SWB. Happiness is a determinant of voluntary waste collection participation, but not for paid waste collection or monetary donation. Additionally, participation in waste collection, whether paid or unpaid, significantly increases overall HWB. These results suggest that policies targeting human well-being are likely to encourage voluntary PEB and benefit from a leverage effect, as PEB, in turn, increases human well-being. |
| Keywords: | Pro-environmental behaviors, Subjective well-being, Field experiment, Waste collection, Donation. |
| JEL: | Q50 I31 C93 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ulp:sbbeta:2024-44 |
| By: | Michaela Kecskésová (Department of Economics, Masaryk University, Lipová 41a, 60200 Brno, Czech Republic); Štěpán Mikula (Department of Economics, Masaryk University, Lipová 41a, 60200 Brno, Czech Republic) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the effects of air pollution on public mood using sentiment analysis of geolocated social media data. Analyzing approximately 7 million twitter posts from the United States in July 2015, we examine how fluctuations in air quality caused by Canadian wildfires influence sentiment. We find robust evidence that higher exposure to particulate matter leads to decreased positive sentiment and increased negative sentiment. Given the importance of mood as a factor in labor productivity, our results suggest that the short-term psychological effects of air pollution, alongside its well-documented physical health impacts, should be considered in policy discussions, as negative shifts in public mood due to poor air quality could have far-reaching economic consequences. |
| Keywords: | air pollution; particulate matter; mood; sentiment analysis; Twitter; wildfires |
| JEL: | Q5 D9 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mub:wpaper:2025-05 |
| By: | Lohawala, Nafisa (Resources for the Future); Arshad Rahman, Mohammad |
| Abstract: | The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is considered critical to achieving climate goals, yet it hinges on consumer interest. This study explores how public intent to purchase EVs relates to four unexamined factors (exposure to EV information, perceptions of EVs’ environmental benefits, views on government climate policy, and confidence in future EV infrastructure) while controlling for prior EV ownership, political affiliation, and demographic characteristics (age, gender, education, and geographic location). We use data from three nationally representative opinion polls by the Pew Research Center 2021 2023 and Bayesian techniques to estimate the ordinal probit and ordinal quantile models. Results from ordinal probit show that respondents who are well informed about EVs, perceive them as environmentally beneficial, or are confident in development of charging stations are more likely to express strong purchase interest, with covariate effects (CEs)−a metric rarely reported in EV research−of 10.2, 15.5, and 19.1 percentage points, respectively. In contrast, those skeptical of government climate initiatives are more likely to express no interest, by more than 10 percentage points. Prior EV ownership exhibits the highest CE (19.0–23.1 percentage points), and the impact of most demographic variables is consistent with the literature. The ordinal quantile models demonstrate significant variation in CEs across the distribution of purchase intent, offering insights beyond the ordinal probit model. We are the first to use quantile modeling to reveal how CEs differ significantly throughout the spectrum of purchase intent.Keywords: Decarbonization, electric vehicle, ordinal probit, Pew Research, quantile regression, technology adoption. |
| Date: | 2025–05–22 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rff:dpaper:dp-25-16 |
| By: | Quynh Do (Curtin University); Pushkar Maitra (Monash University) |
| Abstract: | Activism against climate change is becoming more common globally. There is, however, little evidence on how such activism affects political outcomes. We examine the impact of the Stop-Adani convoy, a protest led by the former leader of the Greens against the proposed Adani Carmichael coal mine in Queensland Australia, on the electoral outcomes in the 2019 Australian federal election. We find that relative to 2016, the Liberal-National Coalition vote share in 2019 was 10 percent higher along the route of the convoy. In addition, mining engagement in the area significantly and positively affected the Coalition vote share. Surprisingly, the convoy had little positive electoral effects for the Greens. Residents of mining regions exhibited lower environmental consciousness and more socially conservative attitudes, and were more likely to vote for the more conservative Coalition. |
| Keywords: | Environmental Activism, Electoral Outcomes, Australia |
| JEL: | D72 Q50 P18 |
| Date: | 2025–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mos:moswps:2025-05 |