TY - JOUR
T1 - Language-related differences in environmental benefits estimation
T2 - Evidence from a mail survey
AU - Ren, Xiaolin
AU - Patunru, Arianto A.
AU - Braden, John B.
PY - 2008/1
Y1 - 2008/1
N2 - In contingent valuation studies, failing to accommodate populations with limited language skills might yield biased estimates. In the United States, there are many residents primarily fluent in Spanish. This study uses conditional logit models applied to data from a bilingual (English and Spanish) conjoint choice mail survey to evaluate the effects of language proficiency on estimates of the economic benefits of contaminated site cleanup. Results indicate that language does have significant effects on welfare estimates. The results suggest that mail surveys addressing environmental issues that may affect a linguistically diverse population should be designed at the outset with multiple languages in mind. (JEL Q51, J19).
AB - In contingent valuation studies, failing to accommodate populations with limited language skills might yield biased estimates. In the United States, there are many residents primarily fluent in Spanish. This study uses conditional logit models applied to data from a bilingual (English and Spanish) conjoint choice mail survey to evaluate the effects of language proficiency on estimates of the economic benefits of contaminated site cleanup. Results indicate that language does have significant effects on welfare estimates. The results suggest that mail surveys addressing environmental issues that may affect a linguistically diverse population should be designed at the outset with multiple languages in mind. (JEL Q51, J19).
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=38149137926&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1465-7287.2007.00060.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1465-7287.2007.00060.x
M3 - Article
SN - 1074-3529
VL - 26
SP - 13
EP - 31
JO - Contemporary Economic Policy
JF - Contemporary Economic Policy
IS - 1
ER -