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Non-Monetary Motivations Of Agroenvironmental Policies Adoption. A Causal Forest Approach

Author

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  • Roberto Esposti

    (Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali - Universita' Politecnica delle Marche)

Abstract

This paper investigates the non-monetary motivations of farmers' adoption of agro-environmental policies. Unlike the monetary (income) motivations, non-monetary drivers can not be directly observed but can be identified from observational data within appropriate quasiexperimental designs. A theoretical justification of farmers' choices is firstly formulated and a consequent natural experiment setting is derived. This latter admits heterogeneous, i.e. Individual, Treatment Effects (ITE) that, in turn, can be interpreted in terms of more targeted and tailored policy expenditure. A Causal Forest (CF) approach is adopted to estimate these ITEs for both the treated and not treated units. The approach is applied to two balanced panel samples of Italian FADN farms observed over the 2008-2018 period. Results show how heterogeneous the farmers' response and the associated non-monetary motivations can be, thus pointing to space for a more efficient policy design.

Suggested Citation

  • Roberto Esposti, 2022. "Non-Monetary Motivations Of Agroenvironmental Policies Adoption. A Causal Forest Approach," Working Papers 459, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali.
    • Handle: RePEc:anc:wpaper:459
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Roberto Esposti, 2022. "The Coevolution of Policy Support and Farmers' Behaviour. An investigation on Italian agriculture over the 2008-2019 period," Working Papers 464, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche (I), Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Agro-Environmental Policy; Common Agricultural Policy; Behavioural Motivations; Individual Treatment Effects; Causal Forests.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C21 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Cross-Sectional Models; Spatial Models; Treatment Effect Models
    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment
    • Q51 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Valuation of Environmental Effects

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