Advanced Search
MyIDEAS: Login

Dying in an Avalanche: Current Risks and Valuation

Contents:

Author Info

  • Andrea M. Leiter

    (Center of Natural Hazard Management, Innsbruck)

  • Gerald J. Pruckner

    (Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Innsbruck)

Abstract

This paper examines the influence of implicit information associated with the occurrence of avalanches on willingness to pay (WTP) values for a risk prevention of dying in an avalanche. We present results of a contingent valuation (CV) study carried out in Austria in two different periods (fall 2004 and winter 2005). The comparison of WTP results between the two waves allows the identification whether the immediate occurrence of avalanches and their attendant deathly accidents affect individual risk evaluations. Surprisingly, individuals state a lower WTP in winter although avalanche accidents are predominant at that time. Personal responsibility of risk exposure and its associated voluntariness are main reasons for the decrease in WTP over time. Preferences for alternative protective measures (e.g. against car accidents or food poisoning) also lead to a decrease of WTP while a higher risk perception and personal experience with avalanches show a positive influence. We conclude that the change in WTP across seasons is not arbitrary but can be explained by specific risk characteristics. It follows that WTP is more robust as previously assumed and therefore represents a proper measure for the elicitation of individual risk reduction preferences.

Download Info

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.
File URL: http://www.economics.adelaide.edu.au/research/papers/doc/wp2005-16.pdf
Download Restriction: no

Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by University of Adelaide, School of Economics in its series School of Economics Working Papers with number 2005-16.

as in new window
Length: 32 pages
Date of creation: Nov 2005
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:adl:wpaper:2005-16

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Adelaide SA 5005
Phone: (618) 8303 5540
Web page: http://www.economics.adelaide.edu.au/
More information through EDIRC

Related research

Keywords: Contingent valuation; willingness to pay; risk prevention; risk perception;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:

References

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
as in new window
  1. Cameron, Trudy Ann & James, Michelle D, 1987. "Efficient Estimation Methods for "Closed-ended' Contingent Valuation Surveys," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 69(2), pages 269-76, May.
  2. Anna Alberini, 2004. "Robustness of VSL Values from Contingent Valuation Surveys," Working Papers 2004.135, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
  3. Sunstein, Cass R, 1997. "Bad Deaths," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 14(3), pages 259-82, May-June.
  4. Anna Alberini & Alistair Hunt & Anil Markandya, 2006. "Willingness to Pay to Reduce Mortality Risks: Evidence from a Three-Country Contingent Valuation Study," Environmental & Resource Economics, European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 33(2), pages 251-264, 02.
  5. Viscusi, W Kip, 1990. "Sources of Inconsistency in Societal Responses to Health Risks," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(2), pages 257-61, May.
  6. Eeckhoudt, Louis R. & Hammitt, James K., 2004. "Does risk aversion increase the value of mortality risk?," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 13-29, January.
  7. Corso, Phaedra S & Hammitt, James K & Graham, John D, 2001. " Valuing Mortality-Risk Reduction: Using Visual Aids to Improve the Validity of Contingent Valuation," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 165-84, September.
  8. Jin-Tan Liu & James K. Hammitt & Jung-Der Wang & Meng-Wen Tsou, 2003. "Valuation of the Risk of SARS in Taiwan," NBER Working Papers 10011, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  9. Cookson, Richard, 2000. "Incorporating psycho-social considerations into health valuation: an experimental study," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 369-401, May.
  10. Weiss, P. & Maier, G. & Gerking, S.D., 1986. "The economic evaluation of job safety: A methodological survey and some estimates for Austria," Open Access publications from Tilburg University urn:nbn:nl:ui:12-4742810, Tilburg University.
  11. Aldy, Joseph E. & Viscusi, W. Kip, 2003. "The Value of Statistical Life: A Critical Review of Market Estimates throughout the World," Working paper 282, Regulation2point0.
  12. Timothy C. Haab & Kenneth E. McConnell, . "Referendum Models and Negative Willingness to Pay: Alternative Solutions," Working Papers 9610, East Carolina University, Department of Economics.
  13. Alberini, Anna & Cropper, Maureen & Krupnick, Alan & Simon, N.B.Nathalie B., 2004. "Does the value of a statistical life vary with age and health status? Evidence from the US and Canada," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 769-792, July.
  14. Persson, Ulf, et al, 2001. " The Value of a Statistical Life in Transport: Findings from a New Contingent Valuation Study in Sweden," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 23(2), pages 121-34, September.
  15. Richard W. Blundell & James L. Powell, 2004. "Endogeneity in Semiparametric Binary Response Models," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 71(3), pages 655-679.
Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

Citations

Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
as in new window

Cited by:
  1. Andrea M. Leiter & Gerald J. Pruckner, 2006. "Proportionality of Willingness to Pay to Small Risk Changes – The Impact of Attitudinal Factors in Scope Tests," Working Papers 2006.90, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.

Lists

This item is not listed on Wikipedia, on a reading list or among the top items on IDEAS.

Statistics

Access and download statistics

Corrections

When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:adl:wpaper:2005-16

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: (Dmitriy Kvasov).

If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

If references are entirely missing, you can add them using this form.

If the full references list an item that is present in RePEc, but the system did not link to it, you can help with this form.

If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.