The aims of this thesis were to evaluate caries-preventive measures from a societal perspective, to demonstrate the use of resources in preventive dentistry, to develop and discuss techniques suitable for evaluating dental care costs and outcomes, and to test costs and consequences within a health economic decision model adapted to preventive dental care. The thesis is based on three separate studies with three separate cohorts. In the first study, performed at a single dental clinic, analysis was made of data on dental caries progression over four years in 92 adolescents, along with the use of resources for preventive treatment. In the second study, data from the intervention study “Evaluation of caries-preventive measures” (performed between 1995 and 1999 at 26 dental health clinics throughout Sweden) were used for economic evaluation. Three different approaches to calculating unit cost were discussed, each of which reflect the differences in treatment costs as influenced by the practitioner’s level of skill and competence (salary) and by methods of handling overhead cost allocation. These methods seem useful for evaluating costs in cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) and cost-benefit analysis (CBA). The CEA showed an incremental cost-effectiveness over four years of SEK 2 043* per averted decayed (D) enamel (e) and dentine caries, missing (M) and filled (F) surface (S) (DeMFS). In the third study, 82 19-year-old individuals agreed to participate in a pilot exploratory case-control study. Individuals with high caries experience formed the test group while the control group consisted of individuals with no caries experience. To explore whether any differences existed between these two groups in perceived oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL), two OHRQOL measures were used. Additionally, the willingness of these individuals to pay (WTP) for a preventive strategy was elicited using the contingent valuation method (CVM) within a cost-benefit approach. Using these WTP values, the cost-benefit analyses showed positive net social benefit (NSB) values for both study groups, meaning that the benefits of prevention exceeded the costs. A new outcome measure, Value of Statistical Oral Health (VOSOH), was also presented. Consideration was also made, within the economic framework fundamental to this thesis, of the trend away from a strictly bio-medical paradigm towards a biopsychosocial perspective. The health economic decision model encompasses a number of different techniques for comparing costs with consequences, each with its own advantages and disadvantages and each with its own field of application. These techniques should be seen as complementary rather than competing. Preventive dentistry plays a central role in Swedish dental health care, and it is important that resources are used properly. Accurate evaluation methods are necessary in order to improve the basis for public decision-making; the methods proposed in this thesis seem to be of potential use in this endeavour. *SEK8.54 = US$1 (December 1999).

The paper presents empirical studies on the appreciation of nature and landscape in the Eastern Ore Mountains (Saxony, Germany) by tourism service providers (TSP) and visitors. Attractive landscape and experience of nature are the most important reasons to visit this region and to spend leisure time there. Particularly mountain meadows, raised bogs and mixed forests are highly appreciated. Deforestation, industrial development and the decline of biodiversity would reduce attractiveness for visitors. We also assessed whether the tourism sector is prepared to contribute to the funding of nature conservation and landscape management. Use of general tax revenues is favoured, but other modes would also be accepted, e.g. a nature tax. Willingness to pay (WTP) is ranging between €0.75 and €1.36 per guest per night by TSP, or between €1.06 and €2.73 per day by visitors. With respect to landscape preference and WTP we found in some cases significant differences among visitors, depending on region of residence, age and education level. A major part of the annual costs for nature conservation and landscape could be covered by public funds (taxes), if the results of the WTP approach were understood as a sign of societal demand and a call to action.

Mit dem Forschungsprojekt wurde das Ziel verfolgt, den Einfluss des Münchner Stromausfalls im Winter 2012 auf die Zahlungsbereitschaft für Versorgungssicherheit sowie auf die Akzeptanz für Erneuerbare Energien zu untersuchen. Das Ausfallereignis in München bot sich in besonderer Weise für eine Untersuchung an, da etwa die Hälfte des Stadtgebiets betroffen war, sodass eine Trennung nach beeinträchtigten und nicht-beeinträchtigen Haushalten aus einer nahezu homogenen Stichprobe ermöglicht wurde. Im Zentrum der Untersuchung steht eine repräsentative Bevölkerungsumfrage, die zwei Monate nach dem Ausfallereignis durchgeführt wurde. Dazu wurden über das Telefonlabor der Technischen Universität Dresden 526 Personen aus Münchner Privathaushalten befragt. Nach unseren Befunden beeinflusst eine kleine Versorgungsunterbrechung, wie in München, die Einstellung hinsichtlich der Erneuerbaren Energien nur unwesentlich. Allerdings können wir mit Hilfe der kontingenten Bewertungsmethode einen signifikanten Einfluss des Ausfalls auf die Zahlungsbereitschaft für eine sichere Versorgung nachweisen. Darüber ergeben sich aus unserer Studie Erkenntnisse für die Umsetzung der Energiewende: Beispielsweise wurde der Wert für die letzte gelieferte Kilowattstunde Strom (Value of Lost Load), das Last-Abschaltpotenzial von Haushalten sowie die Akzeptanz der Höhe der EEG-Umlage ermittelt.

No description available.

This study analyses the international timber trade between Malaysia and Europe with respect to the importance of environmental issues on trade and the role of Malaysia as a major timber exporter to Europe. It also evaluates the comparative advantage of Malaysian wood products and the willingness of French consumers (to represent European communities) to pay for sustainable forest management. The first part gives an overview the clashes of perception between developed and developing countries on the environmental concerns over trade. It was observed that environmental standards may act as non-tariff barriers to exporting countries. In addition, the stringent requirements posed by importing countries on technical, marking and labelling to some extent provide unnecessary barriers to trade. The second part deals with the role of Malaysia as a key player in the tropical timber trade. This part evaluates the main export market for Malaysian wood products to the world. For the purpose of this thesis, the analysis focuses on the European market. From the observations, it was found that the export of wooden furniture surpassed major timber exports in 2004. However, to penetrate the European market, Malaysia has to compete with the Chinese with their lower cost tropical wood products, and Brazil with their advantage in certification and labelling of tropical wood products. In tandem with that, the commitment towards sustainable forest management at national level causes shortage of raw materials in Malaysia. To a certain extent, the internal and external factors create necessary challenges to enter the European market. In the third part, the Balassa approach was used to classify the comparative advantage of Malaysia's twenty one types of wood products in Europe. It was estimated that Malaysia had high comparative advantage only in five products which were mechanized and intermediary industrial products. The products identified were sawn wood, wooden mouldings, plywood, veneer and builders' joinery and carpentry. The remaining products had lower comparative advantage and disadvantage to export to the European market based on the Balassa index. In the last part, the estimation on the willingness to pay for sustainable forest management attributes was conducted. Besides that, additional attributes such as fair trade and wood origin were included. A questionnaire was set up using all the attributes reflected in the hypothetical wood flooring product in the market. Based on the result, consumers were willing to pay the highest for the presence of fair trade and wood origin (in this study referring to French origin); nevertheless they were still willing to pay for sustainable aspects of forest. However, the willingness to pay for all the attributes was altered depending on the respondents' knowledge of forest labelling, their attitudes towards environmental preservation, living area, education level, type of job and income level. In the overall finding of the thesis, all the results from each part were synthesized in a systemic approach simultaneously deliberating on the macro and microeconomic perspectives as well as the dimensions on demand and supply. Overall, the findings suggest that the challenges and constraints facing the Malaysian timber industry indirectly shaped the export of Malaysian wooden products. Malaysia has adapted by going into value-added products to lessen the impact of environment-related trade barriers and to circumvent the shortage of raw materials supply. Malaysia has successfully customized the wooden products to the sustainability and legality requirements of the European market by pursuing the national certification (Malaysian Timber Certification) and being committed to sustainable forest management objectives.

No description available.

Då det ur ett konsumentperspektiv finns ett stort intresse för att kombinera olika miljöperspektiv i en enhetlig märkning samtidigt som forskning visar att en kombination av olika märkningar genererar en ökad betalningsvilja, åsyftar denna studie att undersöka hur dessa två respektive typer av märkningssätt påverkar konsumentens preferenser av varumärket samt hur dessa preferenser skiljer sig åt. Föreliggande studie testar dessutom huruvida Simonsons (1989) teori om kompromisseffekter är applikabel för att öka konsumenters preferenser för ekologiska produkter när ett superekologiskt alternativ tillförs ett valset med ett konventionellt och ett ekologiskt alternativ. Studien bidrar därmed med information till beslutsfattare inom livsmedelsbranschen för hur ekologiska attribut påverkar konsumenters preferenser och betalningsviljan för ekologiska produkter.     408 respondenter har medverkat i en enkätundersökning där svaren har analyserats med hjälp av följande statistiska analyser: reliabilitetstest, t-test, korrelationsanalys, faktoranalys och klusteranalys. Resultaten visar att trots att de flesta konsumenter tenderar att ha såväl en positiv attityd som en ökad betalningsvilja för de ekologiska alternativen, väljer fortfarande majoriteten av konsumenterna det konventionella alternativet, varvid ingen kompromisseffekt uppstår. För de allra flesta av studiens respondenter motsvarar med andra ord inte den ökade betalningsviljan rådande marknadspriser, något som bland annat skulle kunna bero på att konsumenterna inte känner erforderligt med tilltro till miljömärkningarna. Priset kan dessutom fungera som ett hinder mot ett nytt beteende, varvid konsumenten istället av ren vana håller kvar vid det gamla. Vad gäller konsumenternas syn på superekologiska märkningar tycks ett superekologiskt trioalternativ i dagsläget vara att föredra. Något mer överraskande är att respondenterna, i motsats till vad flertalet tidigare studier har visat (Roddy, Cowan & Hutchinson 1994; CEC, 1999; Magnusson, Arvola, Hursti, Åberg & Sjödén, 2001; Torjusen, Lieblein, Wandel & Francis, 2001; m.fl.), dessutom upplever smak och kvalitet hos de ekologiska alternativen som sämre jämfört med det konventionella alternativet.   Eftersom de flesta konsumenter de facto uttrycker en ökad betalningsvilja för ekologiska alternativ, anser vi avslutningsvis att en mindre prisskillnad mellan konventionella och ekologiska produkter är något som beslutsfattare i livsmedelsbranschen framför allt borde ta i beaktning för att i framtiden öka antalet konsumenter av ekologiska produkter. / From a consumer perspective, there exists a considerable interest in combining different environmental perspective in an uniform label. On the other hand, since research shows that a combination of different labels generates a greater willingness to pay, this study aim to examine how these two respective types of labeling affect consumers brand preferences, and furthermore how these preferences differ. The present study also test whether Simonson's (1989) theory of compromise effect could be applied to increase consumer preference for organic products, when adding an organic premium alternative to a choice set with a conventional and an organic alternative. Thus, the study contributes information to decision makers in the food industry about how ecological attributes affect consumers’ brand preferences and their willingness to pay for organic products.   408 respondents have participated in a survey in which the answers were analyzed using the following statistical analyzes: reliability test, t-test, correlation analysis, factor analysis and cluster analysis. The results show that although most consumers tend to have both a positive attitude and an increased willingness to pay for organic alternatives, the majority of consumers still choose the conventional alternative, why no compromise effect occurs. For most of the study's respondents the increased willingness to pay does not correspond with current market prices. Among other things this could be explained by consumers’ lack of confidence in eco-labels. The price may also act as a barrier to a new behavior, whereby the consumer out of pure habit chooses the conventional alternative. Based on the consumer preferences for organic premium labels, the organic premium combination alternative seems to be the preferable choice. Somewhat more surprising, the respondents in this study, in contrast to most previous studies (Roddy et al., 1994; CEC, 1999; Magnusson et al., 2001; Torjusen et al., 2001; etc.), perceived the taste and quality of the ecological alternatives as inferior to the conventional alternative.   Finally, since the respondents show an increased willingness to pay for organic products, we think that decision makers in the food industry primarily should take into consideration that a minor price difference between conventional and organic products is something that could increase the number of consumers buying organic products in the future.

In this research consumers attitudes towards general food safety and their perceptions of the safety of beef in Japan and Canada are examined. Risk perceptions, the willingness to pay for beef traceability from farm to final consumer and the willingness to pay for animal testing for bovine spongifrom encephalopothy (BSE) are measured through a stated preference exercise, provided as part of national surveys in each country. Japanese respondents continue to have higher risk attitudes and perceptions about beef than Canadian respondents in 2009 as compared to 2006. In each country survey respondents strongly prefer domestic beef over imports from any other country. However, interest in beef from other countries increases as full traceability, or one hundred % animal testing for BSE or both attributes are incorporated into the markets. The willingness to pay increases at a diminishing rate, from either traceability or BSE animal testing to both attributes. In latent class models the Japanese data suggest that there are three distinct classes of survey respondents, where class 1 respondents are characterized as being more trusting and willing to pay for beef from different countries, class 2 respondents strongly prefer domestic beef and their willingness to pay for imported beef does not increase with traceability or animal testing and class 3 respondents would only be willing to pay for traceable and a combination of traceable and animal tested domestic beef. Similarly, Canadian survey respondents can be segregated into two classes. Class 1 consumers are more trusting and will be willing to pay for both domestic and imported beef. Class 2 consumers are more cautious. / Agricultural and Resource Economics

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:55:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DeborahQC_DISSERT.pdf: 1429454 bytes, checksum: a0c0f19a1e2b4dce92a5d361e8bb5d9a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-02-18 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / Esta disserta??o teve como objetivo estimar os valores de uso, n?o-uso e o valor econ?mico total de unidades de conserva??o que protegem o ecossistema de dunas, atrav?s dos m?todos de Valora??o Contingente e do Custo de Viagem. O m?todo de Valora??o Contingente ? capaz de estimar o valor de n?o-uso de um recurso natural atrav?s da utiliza??o de um mercado hipot?tico que consiste em um cen?rio ambiental fict?cio em que o bem ambiental sofre varia??es em suas quantidades e os indiv?duos expressam suas prefer?ncias declarando quanto estariam dispostos a pagar (ou aceitar) para garantir a continuidade (ou a perda) da provis?o do bem. Neste estudo, foram aplicadas duas formas de pagamento para o mercado hipot?tico da t?cnica de Disposi??o a Pagar (coletiva/obrigat?ria e individual/volunt?ria) com o objetivo de identificar a demanda da popula??o por investimentos p?blicos nas unidades de conserva??o costeiras urbanas, para testar a efici?ncia de ambas formas de pagamento e para captar os votos de protesto dos entrevistados, na tentativa incorporar nas an?lises a verdadeira disposi??o a pagar dos entrevistados pela a manuten??o e conserva??o das unidades de conserva??o. Os resultados mostraram maiores lances de disposi??o a pagar para a forma de pagamento coletiva e obrigat?ria, pois em pa?ses em desenvolvimento as pessoas atribuem ao governo o financiamento da conserva??o de paisagens naturais. A diferen?a entre os valores de n?o-uso estimados pelas duas formas de pagamento foi de R$8,2 milh?es (3.5 milh?es) e isso representa a demanda da popula??o local por investimentos p?blicos na conserva??o das ?reas costeiras. O M?todo do Custo de Viagem foi utilizado para estimar o valor de uso das dunas, obtido a partir dos gastos incorridos pelos visitantes ao visitar as ?reas de dunas e o somat?rio deste valor ao valor de n?o-uso representa o valor econ?mico total agregado pela paisagem de parques dunares. Paisagens dunares geram anualmente um montante de R$ 800.428,46 por hectare (US$ 339,049.67). A maior contribui??o para esse montante econ?mico ? do parque visitado por turistas, em que o valor agregado pela recrea??o ? 53 vezes maior que o parque visitado por moradores. Embora turistas e moradores reconhe?am os benef?cios de alguns servi?os proporcionados por este ecossistema, ambos atribuem maior valor ? contempla??o da paisagem natural e ? recrea??o ao ar livre. A estimativa desse valor para os diferentes tipos de p?blico oferece ? gestores um justificativa econ?mica para direcionar uso e conserva??o de ?reas de dunas, subsidia na tomada de decis?o atrav?s de an?lises de custo benef?cio no processo de formula??o, acompanhamento e avalia??o de pol?ticas p?blicas e auxilia a investigar como os benef?cios variam de acordo com os tipos de visitantes. Portanto, o uso de estimativas do valor do meio ambiente nesta disserta??o, identificou o valor econ?mico intr?nseco das ?reas de dunas ?s ?reas naturais e o valor agregado pela sua exist?ncia e, portanto, permite que se dimensione a import?ncia dos investimentos em sua conserva??o e restaura??o, podendo ser utilizada como indicador para direcionar pol?ticas e distribui??o de investimentos para a conserva??o dos mesmos. Outro aspecto importante na aplicabilidade de metodologias de valora??o ambiental ? a contribui??o que o uso desse instrumento traz para o debate cient?fico sobre os problemas t?cnicos existentes nas metodologias

Purpose – This study aims to explore, and suggest solutions to, the gap between the supply of information from organic meat producers and the demand of information from consumers regarding traceable characteristics (attributes) of meat in a limited geographical area in order to maximize the utilization and value of collected data. Design/methodology/approach – A mixed methods research design is applied to collect both quantitative data from consumers and qualitative data from suppliers to produce empirical results of the supply and demand of information. A theoretical framework of organic food purchase intent is used for the quantitative study as well as the correlation between consumers’ perceived importance of attributes and their willingness-to-pay for meat. The results of the empirical studies are compared to each other in an effort to expose a possible gap using a gap analysis. Findings – Meat is shifting from a price based commodity to a product based on characteristics. This study reveals that there is now a gap between the information made available by organic meat producers and the demand of information from consumers that needs to be recognized in order to maximize the value of collected data. Information regarding environmental impact of raising and transporting the animals is not extensively collected. A substantial amount of data about attributes of perceived importance, such as safety and handling, animal welfare and medication or other treatments is collected but not extensively shared with consumers. Research limitations/implications – The small sample size in a unique area and the scope of the survey data does not provide a result that can be truly generalized. It is therefore suggested that future studies produce results from a larger sample that incorporates the perceived accessibility of important information for consumers. Practical implications – This contributes to the emerging literature of organic food production by comparing both the supply and the demand of information regarding attributes of meat. This information is valuable to organic meat producers and marketers as well as developers of agricultural systems and databases that should shift their focus to consumer oriented traceability systems. Originality/value – This study goes beyond the substantial body of literature regarding attributes of organic food and consumers preferences by comparing these factors to the available supply of information by meat producers and by suggesting solutions to bridge the gap between them. Keywords – Organic meat, Organic agriculture, e-Agriculture, Traceability, Traceability systems, Consumer oriented, Consumer behavior, Willingness-to-pay, Supply and demand, Information gap, Gap analysis, Business development, United States of America, Sense-making theory, Mixed methods Paper type – Research paper, Bachelor’s thesis