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Does hurricane risk affect individual well-being? Empirical evidence on the indirect effects of natural disasters

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  • Berlemann, Michael

Abstract

While natural disasters might have numerous direct (typically negative) effects, the effect of an increase of natural disaster risk on individual well-being is often neglected. In this paper we study the effects of natural disaster risk on self-reported happiness and life satisfaction at the example of tropical storms. Combining several waves of the integrated European/World Values Survey and appropriate storm data we find a systematically negative effect of hurricane risk on both measures of individual well-being in relatively poor countries in which the population has little possibilities to take protective measures against storms. In highly developed countries, we find a systematic negative and much smaller effect only for life satisfaction. Altogether we conclude that disaster risk tends to play a role for individual well-being, especially on low levels of development.

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  • Berlemann, Michael, 2016. "Does hurricane risk affect individual well-being? Empirical evidence on the indirect effects of natural disasters," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 99-113.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:124:y:2016:i:c:p:99-113
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2016.01.020
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    JEL classification:

    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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