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Are Commercial Fishers Risk Lovers?

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Author Info
Eggert, Håkan () (Department of Economics, School of Economics and Commercial Law, Göteborg University)
Martinsson, Peter () (Department of Economics, School of Economics and Commercial Law, Göteborg University)

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Abstract

Empirical studies of fishers’ preferences have found that most fishers are risk-averse, while expected-utility theory predicts risk neutrality even for sizable stakes. We test this prediction using data from a stated choice experiment with Swedish commercial fishers. Our results show that almost 90% of the respondents do not behave as expected-utility maximizers. 48% of the fishers can be broadly characterized as risk-neutral, 26% as modestly risk-averse, while 26% are strongly risk-averse. Fishers are more risk-neutral the higher the fraction of their household’s income comes from fishing, while fishers with a positive attitude to individual quotas are more risk-averse. Sensitivity testing implies that decisions with modest stakes like a few days of fishing are not influenced by wealth level.

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File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/2077/2811
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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Göteborg University, Department of Economics in its series Working Papers in Economics with number 90.

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Length: 25 pages
Date of creation: 26 Feb 2003
Date of revision:
Publication status: Published in Land Economics, 2004, pages 550-560.
Handle: RePEc:hhs:gunwpe:0090

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Department of Economics, School of Business, Economics and Law, Göteborg University Box 640, SE 405 30 GÖTEBORG, Sweden
Phone: 031-773 10 00
Web page: http://www.handels.gu.se/econ/
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Related research
Keywords: Expected utility; Prospect theory; Risk preferences; Stated preferences; Swedish fisheries;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
Q22 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Renewable Resources and Conservation - - - Fishery

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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.:
  1. Dupont, D.P., 1993. "Price Uncertainty,Expectations Formation and Fishers' Allocation Choice," Working Papers 1993-1, Brock University, Department of Economics.
  2. Camerer, Colin, et al, 1997. "Labor Supply of New York City Cabdrivers: One Day at a Time," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 112(2), pages 407-41, May.
    Other versions:
  3. Daniel S. Holland & Jon G. Sutinen, 2000. "Location Choice in New England Trawl Fisheries: Old Habits Die Hard," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 76(1), pages 133-149. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Matthew Rabin., 2000. "Risk Aversion and Expected-Utility Theory: A Calibration Theorem," Economics Working Papers E00-279, University of California at Berkeley. [Downloadable!]
  5. Mehra, Rajnish & Prescott, Edward C., 1985. "The equity premium: A puzzle," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(2), pages 145-161, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Kahneman, Daniel & Tversky, Amos, 1979. "Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision under Risk," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 47(2), pages 263-91, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Charles A. Holt & Susan K. Laury, 2002. "Risk Aversion and Incentive Effects," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(5), pages 1644-1655, December. [Downloadable!]
  8. Mistiaen, Johan A & Strand, Ivar E, 2000. " Location Choice of Commercial Fishermen with Heterogeneous Risk Preferences," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, American Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 82(5), pages 1184-90. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Johansson-Stenman, Olof & Carlsson, Fredrik & Daruvala, Dinky, 2001. "Measuring Hypothetical Grandparents Preferences For Equality And Relative Standings," Working Papers in Economics 42, Göteborg University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  10. Meyer, Jack, 1987. "Two-moment Decision Models and Expected Utility Maximization," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 77(3), pages 421-30, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Matthew Rabin, 2000. "Risk Aversion and Expected-Utility Theory: A Calibration Theorem," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 68(5), pages 1281-1292, September.
  12. Matthew Rabin, 2000. "Risk Aversion and Expected-Utility Theory: A Calibration Theorem," Department of Economics, Working Paper Series 1034, Department of Economics, Institute for Business and Economic Research, UC Berkeley. [Downloadable!]
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Cited by:
(explanations, 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.)

  1. Tomomi Tanaka & Colin F. Camerer & Quang Nguyen, 2006. "Preferences, Poverty and Politics: Experimental and Survey Data from Vietnam," Levine's Bibliography 321307000000000054, UCLA Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
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