Implications of happiness research for environmental economics |
| |
Authors: | Heinz Welsch |
| |
Affiliation: | Department of Economics, University of Oldenburg, 26111 Oldenburg, Germany |
| |
Abstract: | Using happiness data to study economic issues is a burgeoning field in recent economic literature. This paper shows that happiness research has considerable potential for environmental economic analysis. The paper discusses some implications of happiness research for environmental policy analysis, specifically with respect to the level of socially optimal environmental quality. It discusses evidence that consumer choice may be not utility maximizing and systematically distorted away from intrinsically motivated options, especially environment-friendly consumption. Finally, the paper describes how happiness data can be used in a novel approach to the monetary valuation of environmental quality and discusses the associated benefits and problems in relation to conventional methods. |
| |
Keywords: | Q50 I31 H43 D12 Q51 |
本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录! |
|