The earthquake that hit Haiti in the beginning of 2010 led to tremendous international solidarity in the recovery effort. Despite the tons of aid sent to Haiti, relatively little is known about the effectiveness of the aid or about the continuing needs of the Haitians. Using data collected from...

A wide array of food safety scares and breakdowns have led to loss of consumer confidence in the quality and safety of beef products. To counteract such concerns, firms and regulators have the ability to utilize brands or labels to signal quality. Utilizing a mail survey in France, Germany, and...

This study explores two important issues in experimental economics: calibration and auction institution. Consumer willingness-to-pay bids for corn chips made with non-genetically modified ingredients are elicited from a 1st price and 2nd price auction. Results suggest that responses to scale...

A wide array of food safety scares and breakdowns have led to loss of consumer confidence in the quality and safety of beef products. To counteract such concerns, firms and regulators have the ability to utilize brands or labels to signal quality. Utilizing a mail survey in France, Germany, and...

A large body of literature suggests individuals behave differently when responding to hypothetical valuation questions than when actual payment is required. Such findings have generated a great deal of skepticism over the use of the contingent valuation method and benefit measures derived from...

This study explores two important issues in experimental economics: calibration and auction institution. Consumer willingness-to-pay bids for corn chips made with non-genetically modified ingredients are elicited from a 1st price and 2nd price auction. Results suggest that responses to scale...

With new food technologies such as cloning or added artificial growth hormones, consumers face complex and conflicting information related to the quality, safety, nutrition, and ethical outcomes associated with food choices. Economics has partially addressed the challenge of predicting...

In an effort to counteract adverse consumer reaction to genetically engineered foods, the biotechnology industry has shifted attention to deriving and promoting foods that have been genetically modified to have benefits for the consumer. However, is it uncertain whether this strategic shift will...

This study estimates the value of policies that would mandate labeling of beef from cattle produced with growth hormones or fed genetically modified corn. At no cost, 85 percent of resondents desired mandatory labeling of beef produced with growth hormones and 64 percent of respondents preferred...

When individuals have limited information and are uncertain about the quality of a good, government policy, or the lack thereof, can serve as a signal to consumers about the likelihood of realizing alternatives states of nature. In this paper, we focus on a controversial beliefs about government...