Are French consumers ready to pay a premium for eco‐labeled seafood products? A contingent valuation estimation with heterogeneous anchoring

Could the future French eco‐label for fresh seafood products find its place in the French market? This study employs a contingent valuation method to estimate French consumers’ willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) for eco‐labeled fresh seafood products. We exploit original data from a survey carried out in 2010, where 626 participants responded to a double‐bounded dichotomous choice model, through an ascending or descending bid system. Controlling for shift and anchoring effects in random effect probit models, we significantly improve estimation of WTP and its determinants for the three species studied (monkfish, lobster, sole), in particular when using heterogeneous anchoring. We show that WTP is positively correlated to respondents’ income, and also to their environmental concern, to living alone, to living far from the coast, and to trusting NGOs or public institutions more than producer organizations to implement an eco‐label. We also show that the mean price premiums do not differ between species. Finally, on average, the maximum premium consumers accepted to pay is approximately 10% of the product price.     

What do respondents mean when they report to be “citizens of the world”? Using probing questions to elucidate international differences in cosmopolitanism

The measurement of cosmopolitanism, i.e. the feeling of being a citizen of the world and the corresponding openness towards other cultures and peoples, has proved to be challenging and several scholars have questioned its validity. In this paper, we use web probing, i.e. implementing probing techniques of cognitive interviewing in web surveys, to elucidate the meaning of a frequently used direct measure of cosmopolitanism that asks respondents to what extent they feel they are “a citizen of the world”. As a single-item measure, it cannot be analyzed by statistical approaches such as confirmatory factor analysis. We compare results from Spain, Denmark, Hungary, Germany, Canada, and the U.S. Though the majority of the respondents show an understanding of the item which corresponds to the intention of the researchers, a large part of them does not. In addition, some country differences in the open answers make sense but other differences between countries are hard to explain. We conclude that asking people to what extent they feel they are “a citizen of the world” does not capture well the concept of cosmopolitanism as used in the literature.     

Firm heterogeneity in services trade: Micro-level evidence from eight OECD countries

This paper shows that smaller and less productive firms, as well as first-time exporters, are overproportionally affected by services trade barriers using micro-data from Belgium, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. For these firms, both the propensity to export and export volumes to less restrictive destinations are significantly higher than to more restrictive destinations. In contrast, policy barriers measured by the OECD Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) do not affect export decisions of the largest, most productive and experience services firms. The pattern holds for two major modes of supply, cross-border services exports and foreign affiliate sales of services firms. The findings are consistent with firm sorting mechanisms in trade models with heterogeneous firms and hysteresis of export participation in the presence of sunk export costs.     

Organizing Corporate Social Responsibility in Small and Large Firms: Size Matters

Based on the findings of a qualitative empirical study of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in Swiss MNCs and SMEs, we suggest that smaller firms are not necessarily less advanced in organizing CSR than large firms. Results according to theoretically derived assessment frameworks illustrate the actual implementation status of CSR in organizational practices. We propose that small firms possess several organizational characteristics that are favorable for promoting the internal implementation of CSR-related practices in core business functions, but constrain external communication and reporting about CSR. In contrast, large firms possess several characteristics that are favorable for promoting external communication and reporting about CSR, but at the same time constrain internal implementation. We sketch a theoretical explanation of these differences in organizing CSR in MNCs and SMEs based on the relationship between firm size and relative organizational costs.     

L’Évaluation économique de l'investissement dans la conservation des sols: Le cas des aménagements antiérosifs dans le bassin versant du lac Lagdo au Cameroun

This article presents an analysis of the economic impact of erosion control facilities on farm operations in the watershed of Lake Lagdo in Cameroon. Over the past several decades, erosion control facilities, which are erosion control techniques, have been introduced in Cameroon. No assessment of the impacts of these on farm operations had yet been made. Drawing on data from a survey carried out in 2007 and 2008 and a switching regression model, the study concentrates on the effectiveness of the production factors of parcels of land with and without erosion control facilities. The comparison of the average crop yields of the operations in our sample that either adopted or did not adopt such facilities shows a significant difference, representing up to 10% of the value of the farm production. Proof of a positive selection bias is also found, indicating that the farms with above‐average crop yields are more likely to adopt erosion control facilities. Such facilities on the parcels of land also provide an advantage in terms of increasing the productivity of inputs. The analytical approach developed and the positive conclusion of the selection bias can be pertinent to assessing other soil conservation technologies promoted in the area.