Grantee Research Project Results
2004 Progress Report: Value of Reducing Children's Mortality Risk: Effects of Latency and Disease Type
EPA Grant Number: R830824Title: Value of Reducing Children's Mortality Risk: Effects of Latency and Disease Type
Investigators: Hammitt, James K. , Haninger, Kevin
Institution: Harvard University
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: March 1, 2003 through February 28, 2005
Project Period Covered by this Report: March 1, 2003 through February 28, 2004
Project Amount: $271,746
RFA: Valuation of Environmental Impacts on Children's Health (2002) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Children's Health , Environmental Justice , Human Health
Objective:
Despite research showing that children may be differentially susceptible to various environmental health hazards and that risks to children may be of greater social concern than risks to adults, there have been relatively few studies that estimate the economic value of reducing risk to children’s health. The objective of this research project is to design and conduct a contingent valuation survey to estimate household willingness to pay (WTP) to reduce mortality risk from pesticides in food and to compare WTP to reduce risks to children and risks to adults. We will examine how WTP depends on latency (the length of the period between exposure and development of symptoms), noting that childhood exposure may lead to childhood or adult disease and fatality.. We also will evaluate how WTP depends on disease type, comparing terminal cancer and noncancer illnesses that present similar symptoms and prognoses.
Progress Summary:
We have developed the survey instrument and resolved issues related to the experimental design, risk attributes, measures of health status, and selection of a market-based scenario for reducing health risks. We also have subcontracted administration of the survey to Knowledge Networks, a qualified research firm with expertise in Web-enabled surveys.
Future Activities:
We will refine the survey instrument (e.g., selection of disease pairs and symptom descriptions, development of visual aids, and addition of followup questions to assess the health habits of respondents and their children) and deliver it to Knowledge Networks for programming and testing. After testing is complete, we will field a small pretest, revise the survey if necessary, and field the main wave of the survey. We anticipate that we will field the main wave of the survey this spring and analyze the data this summer.
Supplemental Keywords:
children, contingent valuation, cost benefit, preferences, willingness to pay, children’s vulnerability, decision analysis, dietary exposure, dose response, ecological risk assessment,, Health, RFA, Scientific Discipline, INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION, HUMAN HEALTH, Economic, Social, & Behavioral Science Research Program, Economics & Decision Making, Ecological Risk Assessment, Health Risk Assessment, Risk Assessments, Environmental Policy, Economics, Exposure, decision-making, Children's Health, Social Science, dietary exposure, multi-criteria decision analysis, multi-objective decision making, willingness to pay, age-related differences, non-market valuation, policy analysis, standards of value, human exposure, public policy, surveys, environmental values, morbidity valuation, willingness to pay (WTP), decision analysis, market valuation models, children's vulnerablity, economic valuation, contingent valuation, adult valuation of children's health, dose-response, human health riskProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.