Conservation
Subtitle: from voluntary restraint to a voluntary price premium
By: Matthew Kotchen, Michael Moore.
Contributors: Moore, Michael; National Bureau of Economic Research.
Series: NBER working paper series -- working paper 13678; Working paper series (National Bureau of Economic Research : Online) -- working paper no. 13678.
Publisher: National Bureau of Economic Research
Published: 2007
Place of publication: Cambridge, MA
Language: eng
Format: Electronic resource
Description: "This paper investigates how concern for the environment translates into predictable patterns of consumer behavior.  Two types of behavior are considered.  First, individuals who care about environmental quality may voluntarily restrain their consumption of goods and services that generate a negative externality.  Second, individuals may choose to pay a price premium for goods and services that are more environmentally benign.  A theoretical model identifies a symmetry between such voluntary restraint and a voluntary price premium that mirrors the symmetry between environmental policies based on either quantities (quotas) or prices (taxes).  We test predictions of the model in an empirical study of household electricity consumption with introduction of a price-premium, green-electricity program.  We find evidence of voluntary restraint and its relation to a voluntary price premium.  The empirical results are consistent with the theoretical model of voluntary conservation"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site.
Notes: Title from PDF file as viewed on 6/5/2008.

Includes bibliographical references.

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