What's the Use? Welfare Estimates from Revealed Preference Models when Weak Complementarity Does Not Hold

In this paper we consider the theoretical and empirical ramifications of welfare measurement in revealed preference models when weak complementarity does not hold. In the context of a Kuhn-Tucker model of recreation demand we show that, while it is possible to estimate preferences that do not appear to exhibit weak complementarity, the calculation of welfare measurements from these models requires a cardinal interpretation of preferences that cannot be tested. Furthermore, we reiterate the under-appreciated fact that even traditional use value estimates require a cardinal restriction on preferences that, while often intuitive, also cannot be tested. We demonstrate empirically that the choice of restrictions can have significant ramifications, as use value estimates can vary widely based on the assumed preference structure.

Estimation and Welfare Calculations in a Generalized Corner Solution Model with an Application to Recreation Demand

The Kuhn-Tucker model of Wales and Woodland (1983) provides a utility theoretic framework for estimating preferences over commodities for which individuals choose not to consume one or more of the goods. Due to the complexity of the model, however, there have been few applications in the literature and little attention has been paid to the problems of welfare analysis within the Kuhn-Tucker framework. This paper provides an application of the model to the problem of recreation demand. In addition, we develop and apply a methodology for estimating compensating variation, relying on Monte Carlo integration to derive expected welfare changes.

Thermodynamical Properties of a Rotating Ideal Bose Gas

In a recent experiment, a Bose-Einstein condensate was trapped in an anharmonic potential which is well approximated by a harmonic and a quartic part. The condensate was set into such a fast rotation that the centrifugal force in the corotating frame overcompensates the harmonic part in the plane perpendicular to the rotation axis. Thus, the resulting trap potential became Mexican-hat shaped. We present an analysis for an ideal Bose gas which is confined in such an anharmonic rotating trap within a semiclassical approximation where we calculate the critical temperature, the condensate fraction, and the heat capacity. In particular, we examine in detail how these thermodynamical quantities depend on the rotation frequency.Comment: Author Information under http://www.theo-phys.uni-essen.de/tp/ags/pelster_dir

Valuing Water Quality As a Functionof Water Quality Measures

This paper incorporates a rich set of physical water quality attributes, as well as site and household characteristics, into a model of recreational lake usage in Iowa. Our analysis shows individuals are responsive to physical water quality measures. Willingness-to-pay estimates are reported based on improvements in these measures.

Examining Seasonal Trends of the Martian Polar Warming with the NASA Ames Mars Global Climate Model

The presented work focuses on polar warming as a diagnostic of the mean circulation to increase our understanding of processes that control the mean meridional circulation and transport in the Mars middle atmosphere. The NASA Ames Mars Global Climate Model is utilized to isolate physical processes to determine their impact on polar warming and its seasonal trends

Estimation and Welfare Calculation in a Generalized Corner Solution Model with an Application to Recreation Demand

The Kuhn-Tucker model of Wales and Woodland (1983) provides a utility theoretic framework for estimating preferences over commodities for which individuals choose not to consume one or more of the goods. Due to the complexity of the model, however, there have been few applications in the literature and little attention has been paid to the problems of welfare analysis within the Kuhn-Tucker framework. This paper provides an application of the model to the problem of recreation demand. In addition, we develop and apply a methodology for estimating compensating variation, relying on Monte Carlo integration to derive expected welfare changes

What\u27s the Use? Welfare Estimates from Revealed Preference Models When Weak Complementarity Does Not Hold

The focal point of the revealed preference (RP) valuation literature, including recreation demand and random utility maximization (RUM) models, has been on eliciting the “use” value associated with environmental amenities; i.e., that portion of value associated with direct use of a resource. Mäler’s (1974) concept of weak complementarity is typically invoked to justify this focus. Indeed, weak complementarity explicitly or implicitly underlies most of the RP literature. In this paper, we consider the measurement of welfare in RP models when weak complementarity does not hold. In particular, the Kuhn-Tucker (KT) framework (e.g., Phaneuf et al. 2000) does not impose weak complementarity a priori, raising the possibility of rejecting weakly complementary in estimation and the question as to what is the proper welfare measure to report. Although existence value cannot be measured, we argue that in some circumstances there are components of total value outside of use value onto which RP methods may be able to shed light

Estimation and Welfare Calculations in a Generalized Corner Solution Model with an Application to Recreation Demand

The Kuhn-Tucker model provides a utility theoretic framework for estimating preferences over commodities for which individuals choose not to consume one or more of the goods. This paper provides an application of the Kuhn-Tucker model to the problem of recreation demand and site selection, modeling the demand for fishing in the Wisconsin Great Lakes region