Wildfires in Poland: The impact of risk preferences and loss aversion on environmental choices

B-Tier
Journal: Ecological Economics
Year: 2015
Volume: 116
Issue: C
Pages: 300-309

Score contribution per author:

0.670 = (α=2.01 / 3 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

This paper examines how risk preferences and loss aversion affect individual choices regarding environmental risks, specifically forest wildfires in Poland. We also examine how the same individuals make choices in the context of financial risks. Estimating risk, loss aversion and weighting probability parameters allows us to directly test whether Prospect Theory or Expected Utility Theory is the better underlying behavioural model in both domains. We find that in a sample consisting of a general population of Poles, the majority of respondents demonstrate behaviour consistent with Prospect Theory in both environmental and financial domains. This finding has significant implications for future non-market valuation studies. Additionally, in this study, we find evidence for similar risk preferences across those two domains.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:ecolec:v:116:y:2015:i:c:p:300-309
Journal Field
Environment
Author Count
3
Added to Database
2026-01-24