Valuation Studies Research Articles

Demand and willingness to pay for human papilloma virus vaccine for their daughters among mothers in Haryana, India: A contingent valuation study.

Cervical cancer accounts for 10 percent of cancer deaths among women in India. The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine can protect against infection but it is not included in India's universal immunisation programme. This study aimed to assess the demand and willingness to pay for the HPV vaccine among mothers of adolescent daughters. We conducted a contingent valuation exercise involving a hospital-based cross-sectional study to assess the demand for an HPV vaccine among mothers of adolescent daughters, their willingness to pay and its determinants. Participants were recruited at a tertiary care civil hospital in the city of Gurgaon in North India, and data was collected from December 2018 to February 2019. A questionnaire was administered to obtain demographic and awareness indicators. Payment cards were used to elicit the willingness to pay amount. Out of 319 respondents, 79% were willing to pay for the vaccine. The mean maximum willingness to pay was INR 629 (USD 35), which was less than the vaccine market price of INR 2000-3000 (USD 117-175) per dose. Participant age and number of children significantly influenced demand, while family income and awareness of cervical cancer influenced willingness to pay for the HPV vaccine. Participants were willing to spend between 3% and 34% of their monthly income on the vaccine. High demand and low willingness to pay for the HPV vaccine indicate low value perception of the health outcome among mothers of adolescent children in India. A strategy aimed at a price reduction of the vaccine and increasing its demand through improved awareness is important. At the same time, subsidising the vaccine in the short run is needed.

The Indie Nobel?

Abstract The work of nine of the last ten non-Anglophone winners of the Nobel Prize in literature is – or, in a few cases, was – mainly published in the United States and the United Kingdom by independent publishers. This essay draws on the resources of the interdisciplinary field of valuation studies to show that this phenomenon is not only a reflection of commercial considerations but also reveals differences in the way the Nobel Committee, independent publishers, and conglomerate publishers articulate literary value. Paying special attention to the discourses of justification around J.M.G. Le Clézio, the essay shows how the Committee’s emphasis on documentation, truth, and witness gets refracted in, on the one hand, a focus on serious and melancholic postures of witness in the literary value discourse characterizing the New York-centered literary upmarket segment, and a celebration of cross-cultural curiosity in the case of independent publishers on the other.

Bump in energy prices and their impact on natural resources: Energy transition initiatives in OECD countries

Ecosystems and humans suffer from the over-exploitation of natural resources. A growing inequality and environmental crisis demand action, including increasing producer responsibility, extending supply chain legislation, ensuring green public procurement, and promoting circularity. Considering the roles of financial development and international trade, this paper examines whether energy prices and transitions affect natural resources in OECD countries from 1990 to 2020. Our empirical estimates are based on advanced economic methodologies, Fisher effect cointegration, slope heterogeneity, and continuously updated fully modified (CUP-FM) and bias-corrected (CUP-BC) estimators. The result indicates that the increase in energy prices and the transition to a sustainable energy system have improved natural resources. The result suggests that energy and natural resource companies are developing dynamic pricing capabilities to cope with volatility and inflation. Energy and natural resource companies believed inflation would be short-lived, protecting them from price hikes due to their value chain position. Policymakers engaged in green growth strategies should facilitate the transition to green growth. As part of the pricing process, we recommend more pricing. This recommendation does not oppose valuation studies. Rather than addressing the most fundamental issues, much effort has been put into the technical details. Research limitations and future directions are discussed.

The Worth of Nature: Valuations of Glaciers in Alaskan and Norwegian Media Discourse

ABSTRACT This article presents a comparative case study of public valuation of glaciers in Alaska and Norway. The first case examines Alaska’s Mendenhall Glacier, which has been central in public debate over the US Forest Service’s proposed expansion of the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area. The second case centers on Norway’s Svartisen glacier, which garnered international attention when the startup company, Svaice, announced its intent to extract glacier ice cubes for cocktail coolers at high-end bars and restaurants. A rhetorical analysis of newspaper coverage relevant to each case reveals that in both debates, instrumental, relational, and intrinsic values are attributed to the respective glaciers, and that government, business, and community actors hold the most power in these conversations. However, nuances within articulations of instrumental value suggest that Norwegian actors strive to balance human and glacier needs, whereas Alaskan actors largely prioritize human needs by constituting the glacier as a utilitarian object.

Real estate assessment of agricultural lands outside the zoning plan with artificial neural networks and multiple regression analysis methods: The case of Aksaray, Bahçesaray and Kırımlı rural districts

This study aims to determine the market value of the agricultural lands in the rural Bahçesaray and Kirimli districts, which are outside the zoning plan, where agricultural production continues in Aksaray Province, Central District, in Turkey, by mass valuation methods. It is also aims to provide value estimation and value map production with the help of geographic information systems (GIS). Using the sales data from 125 parcels in the study area, the market value of the real estates for which the value is unknown in the region, was estimated. The most frequently used criteria in the assessment of agricultural lands were determined, and the valuation was carried out with Multiple Regression Analysis (MRA) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN). By means of the assessment and the valuation study, the performance of the valuation methods was compared, and it was determined that the best result according to the test data was the valuation with ANN. In the performance analysis conducted with ANN, the Coefficient of Determination (R²)=0.87, Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE)=0.192, Mean Absolute Error (MAE)=0.047 and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE)=0.059 was found. Moreover, according to the proportional standards guide determined by the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO), the performance measurement, the values derived for the Coefficient of Dispersion as (COD)=19.58 and Price-Related Differential as (PRD)=1.02 were also found to be within acceptable limits. Since the valuation of agricultural lands is a less studied subject, there are few articles in the literature. For this reason, it will be useful to increase such as article and evaluate the results applying it region by region. In this study, estimates were found with MRA and ANN methods and value maps were created.

Testing 2 Alternative Time Trade-Off Methods for Valuation of Children’s Health States

ObjectivesComposite time trade-off (cTTO) values for EQ-5D-Y-3L health states tend to be high, raising concerns about sensitivity particularly for mild or moderate health states. We conceptualized and pilot tested 2 alternative time trade-off (TTO) variants: the caregiver TTO (CGTTO) and lag-time TTO (LTTO). MethodsWe collected CGTTO and LTTO data in China for 10 EQ-5D-Y-3L health states and compared the resulting values, respondent feedback, and task completion times with those from an EQ-5D-Y-3L valuation study using cTTO. We also examined how age and parental status of respondents could affect TTO values. ResultsA total of 304 participants were included in this study. Overall, cTTO showed statistically better results in all feedback questions. On a 5-point Likert scale where lower score means greater agreement, the mean (SD) feedback scores for cTTO, LTTO, and CGTTO were 1.18 (0.58), 1.45 (0.91), and 1.65 (1.02) for “easy to understand”; 1.45 (0.91), 1.94 (1.08), and 1.86 (1.24) for “easy to differentiate”; and 3.61 (1.29), 2.97 (1.33), and 3.02 (1.50) for “difficult to decide,” respectively. The mean (SD) TTO values of all 10 states were 0.463 (0.494), 0.387 (0.555), and 0.123 (0.710) for cTTO, LTTO, and CGTTO, respectively. The effects of age and parental status on TTO values differed by the 3 methods. ConclusionsLTTO and CGTTO produce values with good characteristics and merit further investigation. Researchers need to be aware of the differences in design and values when using the TTO method to value children’s health states.

Estimating the economic value of hydropeaking externalities in regulated rivers

Hydropower is a flexible form of electricity generation providing both baseload and balancing power to accommodate intermittent renewables in the energy mix. However, hydropower also generates various externalities. This study investigates individuals' preferences for policies aiming to reduce short-term regulations (i.e., hydropeaking in regulated rivers) while accounting for associated externalities with a discrete choice experiment. This is the first valuation study focusing on hydropeaking that considers both negative and positive externalities. The results imply that most individuals prefer stronger restrictions on short-term regulations to mitigate local environmental impacts. Individuals especially value improvements in recreational use, fish stocks, and the ecological state. On the other hand, potential increases in CO2 emissions are linked with a clear disutility. The estimated benefits obtained from an improved state of the river environment due to such restrictions exceed the disutility caused by increased CO2 emissions. The results also reveal unobserved preference heterogeneity among individuals, which should be accounted for in the willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimation using a model specification with correlated utility coefficients. Overall, the findings can inform policy-makers and environmental managers on the economic value of hydropeaking externalities and further guide the sustainable management of rivers regulated for hydropower generation.

Re-revisiting the Utilities of Health States Worse than Dead: The Problem Remains.

In valuation studies of the EQ-5D-5L instrument, the composite time tradeoff method (cTTO) is often used to elicit preferences. In cTTO, some health states are considered worse than dead (WTD) and are assigned negative utility values. However, these negative values correlate poorly with state severity, which suggests that cTTO is insufficiently sensitive. A recent threshold explanation has been offered to account for the lack of correlation: because the severity threshold beyond which a state is considered WTD differs between respondents, the correlation should be studied for individual respondents clustered by the number of WTD states. The results obtained in such a threshold approach were interpreted to disprove the insensitivity of the cTTO method. To scrutinize the threshold explanation and test whether it indeed refutes the insensitivity of cTTO. The study uses data from the EQ-5D-5L Polish valuation study, which includes cTTO responses from 1,510 participants, each of whom evaluated 10 EQ-5D-5L states. The correlation analysis and threshold approach are repeated to confirm the results from previous studies. The data are then modified in 2 contrasting ways. First, negative utilities are randomly reshuffled to test whether the threshold approach can capture cTTO insensitivity. Second, individual-level regressions are used to simulate negative values to ensure they correlate with severity at the individual respondent level, verifying whether the overall severity-utility correlation should be observed. First, reshuffling negative utilities does not change the results of the threshold approach. Hence, the threshold explanation fails to prove cTTO sensitivity. Second, when sensitivity was introduced on an individual level, a significant overall correlation between severity and negative utility arose. cTTO is insensitive to severity for WTD states. For the composite time tradeoff method, the utility values of health states worse than dead correlate poorly with state severity, which suggests that cTTO has insufficient sensitivity.Recently, a so-called threshold explanation was offered for the lack of correlation.I show why the threshold explanation fails and why the composite time tradeoff is indeed insensitive for worse-than-dead states.

Child health valuation protocol for a discrete choice experiment comparing paired comparison and kaizen tasks and estimating US EQ-5D-Y-3L values on an experience scale

IntroductionA decade ago, the first national valuation study of the EQ-5D-Y-3L (Y-3L) involved a discrete choice experiment (DCE) that asked 4155 US adult respondents to complete 40 paired comparisons, choosing...

The EQ-5D-3L Valuation Study in Pakistan.

To utilize EQ-5D in economic evaluations, a societal-based value set is needed. To date, no value sets exist for any EQ-5D instrument in Pakistan. Previous EQ-5D studies conducted in Pakistan 'borrowed' health preferences developed in other countries. However, for a value set to be valid for Pakistani population, it should represent the preferences of the Pakistani population, and culture and living standards of Pakistan. The aim of this study was to derive a Pakistani EQ-5D-3L value set. A moderately representative sample aged 18 years and over was recruited from the Pakistani general population. A multi-stage stratified quota method with respect to ethnicity, gender, age and religion was utilized. Two elicitation techniques, the composite time trade-off (cTTO) and discrete choice experiments (DCE) were applied. Interviews were undertaken by trained interviewers using computer-assisted face-to-face interviews with the EuroQol Portable Valuation Technology (EQ-PVT) platform. To estimate the value set, a hybrid regression model combining cTTO and DCE data was used. A total of 289 respondents who completed the interviews were included for the analysis. The hybrid model correcting for heteroskedasticity without a constant was selected as the final model for the value set. It is shown that being unable to do usual activities (level 3) was assigned the largest weight, followed by mobility level 3, self-care level 3, pain/discomfort level 3 and anxiety/depression level 3. The worst health state was assigned the value - 0.171 in the final model. A Pakistani country-specific EQ-5D-3L value set is now available. The availability of this value set may help promote and facilitate health economic evaluations and health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) research in Pakistan.

Public transport crowding valuation in a post-pandemic era

AbstractIt is important to understand how public transport passengers value on-board crowding since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The main contribution of this study is to derive the crowding valuation of public transport passengers in a post-pandemic era entirely based on observed, actual passenger route choices. We derive passengers’ crowding valuation for the London metro network based on a revealed preference discrete choice model using maximum likelihood estimation. We find that after the passenger load on-board the metro reaches the seat capacity, the in-vehicle time valuation increases by 0.42 for each increase in the average number of standing passengers per square metre upon boarding. When comparing this result to a variety of crowding valuation studies conducted before the pandemic in London and elsewhere, we can conclude that public transport passengers value crowding more negatively since the pandemic. Furthermore, we found a ratio between out-of-vehicle time and in-vehicle time of 1.94 pre-pandemic and of 1.92 post-pandemic, based on which we conclude that the relative waiting/walking time valuation did not significantly change since the COVID-19 pandemic. Our study results contribute to a better understanding on how on-board crowding in urban public transport is perceived in a European context since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The regional monitoring of territorial differences in population morbidity of circulatory system diseases

The actual problem of health care in many regions of Russia are cardiovascular diseases. The valuation and monitoring study of prevalence of this class of diseases was implemented in the Kamchatka Kray. The study was based on official statistic data of general morbidity of adult and children population with circulatory system diseases in 2010-2021. The application of GIS-technologies permitted to implement territorially differentiated evaluation and monitoring of prevalence of circulatory system diseases. The increase of indicators and percentage of circulatory system diseases in the structure of general morbidity of adults was established. The children population of the region is characterized by decreasing of indicators of morbidity of cardio-vascular diseases. The space-time discontinuity of prevalence of these diseases in territories of the Kamchatka Kray. The study results were visualized in series of cartograms. The situation with cardio-vascular morbidity in the Kamchatka Kray has territorial differences: increased level of morbidity in central and distant regions and decreased one south regions. The obtained information can be applied in implementation of regional project of struggle with cardio-vascular diseases.

Ethical Plateaus in Danish Child Protection Services

This paper analyses how controversies shape an emerging field of AI in Danish child protection services. In a context of high controversiality, we examine how algorithmic systems evolve in conjunction with changing ethical stakes. Empirically, we report a study comprising all Danish attempts (n=4) to develop algorithmic models for child protection services. These attempts were never fully implemented and have been either cancelled, paused or changed significantly since their outset. Combining Fischer’s (2004) notion of ‘ethical plateaus’ with insights from valuation studies, we propose that public controversies shape how organisations enact their algorithms as ethically ‘good’. Our findings demonstrate how valuations of ethically contestable algorithms involve the very distribution of agency across humans and algorithms, i.e., how much power and agency should be delegated to algorithmic models. In the case of Danish child protection services, this moves towards reducing their agency.

The amenity value of natural views

AbstractWe estimate nonmarket values for natural views in an urban setting. These views contain the aesthetics of natural areas commonly found in public parks and open space, and offer an aspect of property valuation that previous research is unable to disentangle from proximity to parks and open space. We incorporate machine learning techniques on Google Street View images to identify natural views in an urban setting. We find positive capitalization rates associated with household views of park‐like properties. Estimates are robust to a variety of specifications, including models that are identified off of new developments on neighboring properties and falsification tests that help to rule out the effect of a broader neighborhood environment. From a policy perspective, our results inform as to the optimal size, location, and shape of open space. Furthermore, machine learning methods used in the construction of our view variable provide a potentially powerful tool for other nonmarket valuation studies.

Estimating environmental and cultural/heritage damages of a tailings dam failure: The case of the Fundão dam in Brazil

We present the results of a contingent valuation study aimed at estimating the monetary value of environmental and cultural/heritage injuries caused by the Fundão (tailings) Dam failure in Brazil in 2015 as perceived by the Brazilian population. While the valuation literature on mining-related externalities is considerable, valuation studies of environmental and cultural/heritage injuries resulting from mining incidents are scarce and most available damage assessments apply market valuation methods, while rarely considering environmental and other nonmarket-valued impacts. The flooding and the release of tailings from the Fundão Dam failure led to injuries to sediments, watercourse opacity, and oxygenation, changes in riparian morphology, damages to cultural/heritage resources, mortality to fish and wildlife, changes in the food chain and more along the 675 km watercourse of the Doce River. This was arguably the greatest environmental and cultural/heritage injury ever caused by a single tailings dam collapse. The study followed state-of-the-art recommendations for the development, administration, and data analysis of stated-preference valuation methods. The survey of a representative sample of 5195 Brazilian urban households revealed that the average lower-bound willingness-to-pay estimate to avoid a similar incident in the near future was 137 USD and the parametric-based estimate was 230 USD per household, which aggregates to 7.96 or 12.91 billion USD, respectively. This corresponds to environmental damages of 176 or 295 USD per m3 of tailings released.

Willingness to pay for an annual vaccine in an endemic COVID-19 scenario: a contingent valuation study in Metro Manila, Philippines

Using the Contingent Valuation Method, this paper estimated willingness to pay (WTP) for annual COVID-19 booster vaccines for the endemic phase of the disease. The study found that, on the average, Metro Manila households would be WTP PhP2,199.71–2,410.50 (US$42.71–46.81) for a one-dose vaccine with 90% efficacy for one year. This WTP estimate is a measure of the perceived benefits from preventing COVID-19 infection, suggesting the potential for private markets to cater to those who prefer to obtain the annual booster COVID-19 vaccine privately, while a public vaccination program that subsidizes partially or fully the cost of the vaccine for those with lower capacity to pay is likely to pass a social cost–benefit assessment. Consistent with economic theory, WTP was found to significantly decrease with vaccine price and increase with income. Further, the study found general acceptance (measured in terms of the Health Benefit Model constructs) of COVID-19 vaccines among Metro Manila households despite the dengue vaccine controversy in the country immediately prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Exploring local perceptions around the value of marine biodiversity: the case of kelp in the Western Cape, South Africa

ABSTRACT Kelp are large seaweeds that provide a variety of contributions to humans and the environment. In South Africa, kelp forests are expanding as a consequence of climate change. Considering this expansion, assessing local perceptions and values around kelp’s contributions may assist with the implementation of inclusive management strategies. The lack of consideration of non-market and non-use values is a gap in kelp valuation studies, with kelp ecosystems and their use rarely valued outside of classical economic valuation frameworks. This study sought to fill this research gap, intending to assess local perceptions about varied value dimensions associated with kelp using a pluralistic valuation approach. Drawing from a sample population of Recreational Users and/or Coastal Community Members, Environmental Managers and Conservationists, and Kelp and/or Abalone Industry, the study investigated perceptions of value towards kelp in the Western Cape region of South Africa. Results indicate that the perceived value of kelp extends far beyond its economic value as a harvested resource. Rather, individuals highly value kelp’s ecological and social contributions, and have strong relational values towards kelp, recognizing its role in enhancing their quality of life and well-being. While most individuals did not display significant negative perceptions around kelp, some individuals in the Kelp and/or Abalone Industry indicated frustrations with kelp management strategies and kelp concession permit allocation processes. These findings highlight the need to incorporate local perceptions in integrated marine resource management solutions that recognize the plurality of values not only around kelp in the Western Cape but marine biodiversity at large.

Inventory of Real Estate Assets of the Trans-Andean Railroad in the 'Alausí - Bucay' Section: A Study of Valuation and Preservation of the Railroad Heritage

Inventory of Real Estate Assets of the Trans-Andean Railroad in the 'Alausí - Bucay' Section: A Study of Valuation and Preservation of the Railroad Heritage

Assessing the trade-offs in more nature-friendly mosquito control in the Upper Rhine region

Recent studies show that the widely used mosquito control agent Bti has more negative effects on nature than previously expected. However, it is not yet clear whether people support a more nature-friendly mosquito control, as such an adaptation could potentially lead to higher nuisance. This study explores this question by assessing the willingness to pay for an adapted mosquito control strategy that reduces the use of Bti, while maintaining nuisance protection within settlements. For this purpose, a Contingent Valuation Study was conducted in the German Upper Rhine Valley. The results show that the majority of the surveyed population attaches a high value to a more nature-friendly mosquito control in terms of willingness to pay and is willing to accept a higher nuisance outside the villages. Policy makers should, thus, foster the development and implementation of such more nature-friendly mosquito control strategies to increase both environmental and societal benefits.

Using Age-Specific Values for Pediatric HRQoL in Cost-Effectiveness Analysis: Is There a Problem to Be Solved? If So, How?

Value sets for the EQ-5D-Y-3L published to date appear to have distinctive characteristics compared with value sets for corresponding adult instruments: in many cases, the value for the worst health state is higher and there are fewer values < 0. The aim of this paper is to consider how and why values for child and adult health differ; and what the implications of that are for the use of EQ-5D-Y-3L values in economic evaluations to inform healthcare resource allocation decisions. We posit four potential explanations for the differences in values: (a) The wording of severity labels may mean the worst problems on the EQ-5D-Y-3L are descriptively less severe than those on the EQ-5D-5L; (b) Adults may genuinely consider that children are less badly affected than adults by descriptively similar health issues. That is, for any given health problem, adult respondents in valuation studies consider children's overall health-related quality of life (HRQoL) on average to be higher than that for adults; (c) Values are being sought by eliciting adults' stated preferences for HRQoL in another person, rather than in themselves (regardless of whether the 'other person' concerned is a child); and (d) The need to elicit preferences for child HRQoL that are anchored at dead = 0 invokes special considerations regarding children's survival. Existing evidence does not rule out the possibility that (c) and (d) exert an upward bias in values. We consider the implications of that for the interpretation and use of values for pediatric HRQoL. Alternative methods for valuing children's HRQoL in a manner that is not 'age specific' are possible and may help to avoid issues of non-comparability. Use of these methods would place the onus on health technology assessment bodies to reflect any special considerations regarding child quality-adjusted life-year gains.