It is conceivable that the "whether to buy" and "how much tobuy" decisions in the purchasing process of households areinfluenced by the inventory process. In this paper we thereforeput forward a model for consumption, where we rely on establishedeconomic theory. We incorporate this model in a...

This discussion paper resulted in the article Broad and Narrow Bracketing in Gift Certificate Spending in the 'European Economic Review' (2014). Volume 66, pages 284-302.<P> We survey 1,050 consumers who have just redeemed one or more open loop gift certicates to learn whether they view gift...</p>

Integrated assessment models lack a microeconomic foundation in modelling environmental damages to the economy. To overcome this, damage coefficients are incorporated in standard microeconomic models. Firms and consumers take both damages and prices as given. Demand, supply, profit and...

We propose a consistent utility-based framework to jointly explain a household's decisions on purchase incidence, brand choice and purchase quantity. The approach differs from other approaches, currently available in the literature, as it is able to take into account consumption dynamics. In the...

This paper presents a meta-analysis of variations in price and income elasticities of residential water demand.Information on the determinants of consumer demand is of pivotal importance for the efficiency and efficacy ofpublic and private policy-making. It is also crucial for effective water...

This discussion paper resulted in an article in <I>Health Economics</I> (2012). Volume 21, issue 4, pages 367-385.<P> Rapid urbanization could have positive and negative health effects, such that the net impact on population health is not obvious. It is, however, highly pertinent to the human welfare...</p></i>

Does medical insurance affect health care demand and in the end contribute to improvements in the health status? Evidence for China for the year 2004, by means of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), shows that health insurance does not affect health care demand in a significant manner....

One of the drivers of green consumerism are social network externalities that are associated with buying 'green' because green consumerism is fashionable, or because of reputation effects. We analyze how the strength of this social network effect impacts green consumerism, environmental...

Given the possibility to modify the probability of a loss, will a profit-maximizing insurer engage in loss prevention or is it in his interest to increase the loss probability? This paper investigates this question. First, we calculate the expected profit maximizing loss probability within an...

Risk may induce precautionary saving but it can also reduce saving. The theoretical literature recognizes both possibilities, but favors a positive effect (both for developed and developing countries); the empirical literature is divided, reporting (small) positive effects for developed...