ABSTRACT
Stated preference approaches use hypothetical data to estimate the ex ante willingness to pay for various commodities. For example, the contingent valuation method can be used to estimate economic values of environmental resources, including nonuse values – those environmental values that are enjoyed by consumers who do not use the environmental resource on-site. Most economists, however, are firmly rooted in the revealed preference paradigm to estimate the use values of environmental resources. Revealed preference approaches are based on actual choices and actual choices based on real costs and benefits better reflect environmental values.
