When products are differentiated and quality is highly subjective (e.g., fashion or art), novel (e.g., a new feature), or difficult to verify prior to purchase (e.g., credence attributes), consumers may turn to price as a signal of quality. Products containing genetically modified (GM)...

Vaccines against several common foodborne pathogens are being developed and could substantially alter the policy tools available to address foodborne illness. However, little analysis is available to suggest how social welfare would be affected by these new vaccines. To address this void, we use...

Labels address a market failure—asymmetric information—through costly expenditures borne by consumers, firms, and taxpayers. In this review, we explore when mandatory and voluntary labeling policies may be socially optimal. Although the analysis ostensibly revolves around simple comparisons...

We test the: degree to which electricity consumers will trade off price and environmental attributes, effectiveness of environmental certification, and effectiveness of voluntary versus mandatory environmental disclosure. The type and consistency of information, the degree of difference in...

Labels address a market failure - asymmetric information - through costly expenditures borne by consumers, firms, and taxpayers. In this review, we explore when mandatory and voluntary labeling policies may be socially optimal. Although the analysis ostensibly revolves around simple comparisons...

During the last two decades, product labeling has become an increasingly used policy tool, particularly with respect to the provision of health and environmental information. Theory holds that the flow of information among market participants plays a critical role in the efficient operation of...

We provide evidence of consumption externalities for foods with genetically engineered ingredients. The probability of choosing bread made exclusively from genetically engineered wheat is significantly higher for individuals who perceive normal bread to contain higher levels of genetically...

We add to the limited empirical literature on consumers' use of price as a quality signal by testing if the traditional downward-sloping consumption-price relationship fails to hold for GM products using data collected from a nationally representative mail survey featuring several hypothetical...

Using data collected by the U.S. Department of Energy we test how price and environmental marketing and labeling affects respondents' uncertainty about product attributes and about their purchase intentions.