Call for Papers
Marine Resource Economics
Special Issue on Attribute Non-Attendance in Choice Experiments of Marine Ecosystem Goods and Services
Special Issue Editors: Daniel K. Lew and John C. Whitehead
Stated preference discrete choice experiments (DCE) are increasingly being used by researchers seeking to understand consumer preferences and values in environmental economics, transportation, health, and marketing. An active DCE research area relates to behaviors that break from the assumptions of fully compensatory behavior assumed in standard discrete choice models. This has led to research on ways of incorporating heuristics and cognitive processes in models of DCE response behavior. In particular, considerable attention in recent years has been on attribute non-attendance (AN-A)--a type of choice behavior where individuals ignore one or more attributes in the DCE question.
Marine Resource Economics is soliciting contributions for a special issue on the topic of AN-A in choice experiments of marine ecosystem goods and services in Volume 34 (2019). We welcome submissions that are empirical, theoretical, or both and advance our understanding of AN-A as it is applied to marine ecosystem goods and services (marine habitats, coastal ecosystem services, recreational activities, threatened and endangered species, etc.).
The special issue editors request five types of papers:
- Comparison studies: There are numerous ways for accounting for AN-A behavior in the literature and that generally can be classified as either stated or inferred approaches. Studies comparing AN-A approaches (stated versus inferred, alternative inferred approaches, joint versus separate, etc.) are welcome.
- Case studies: There have been a number of AN-A articles published in the areas of agriculture, environment, health, and transportation. The editors seek case studies focused on marine ecosystem goods and services.
- Replications: There have been a number of stated preference articles addressing marine ecosystem goods and services over the years. The editors seek re-examinations of these older, published studies with AN-A methods.
- Policy studies: How does AN-A affect benefit-cost, resource allocation, natural resource damage assessment, or other types of policy? AN-A may alter willingness to pay estimates. When there is AN-A on the cost coefficient, willingness to pay is biased upwards. When there is AN-A on an attribute coefficient, willingness to pay is biased downward. Should AN-A willingness to pay estimates be used as base case estimates or as alternatives in sensitivity analysis? Meta-analyses and benefit transfer studies are also welcome.
- Exploratory studies: Studies exploring the theoretical and empirical bases of AN-A behavior and factors affecting it are also encouraged.
If interested, please send an abstract to the special issue guest editors (Dan Lew, [email protected]; John Whitehead, [email protected]) by May 25, 2018, for preliminary review. Selected abstract authors will be asked to submit papers for the special issue through the Journal’s website (https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/toc/mre/current) by September 30, 2018. All submissions are subject to the Journal’s standard review process.
