95 research outputs found
People's perception and cost effectiveness of home confinement during an influenza pandemic evidence from the French case
No full textOnline firstIn France, home confinement is not a common preventive measure against an influenza pandemic, although it is used around the world. Based on a stated method approach, we analyze the attitude that the French would adopt if this measure were put in place. Next, we propose a cost–benefit analysis to discuss the cost-effectiveness of this measure. We find that over three-quarters of respondents report complying with home confinement. Their choice depends on their individual characteristics, the interaction they may have with an infected person and home confinement conditions, but not their experience with preventive measures. We find that behaviors such as sensitivity to certainty, selfishness and altruism emerge. As far as cost-effectiveness is concerned, our study shows that home confinement is a prevention path that should not be neglected and should even be prescribed.Bien que le confinement soit utilisé dans le monde entier comme mesure préventive contre une pandémie de grippe, en France, il n'est encore pas très employé. Nous analysons l'attitude que les Français adopteraient si cette mesure était mise en place. Ensuite, nous proposons une analyse pour discuter du rapport coût-efficacité de cette mesure. Nous obtenons que plus des trois quarts des répondants déclarent qu'ils se conformeraient au confinement. Leur choix dépend de leurs caractéristiques individuelles, de l'interaction qu'ils peuvent avoir avec une personne infectée et des conditions de confinement, mais pas de leur expérience des mesures préventives. Nous constatons que des comportements tels que la sensibilité à la certitude, l'égoïsme et l'altruisme émergent. En ce qui concerne le rapport coût-efficacité, notre étude montre que le confinement est une voie de prévention qui ne devrait pas être négligée et devrait même être prescrite
Santé, environnement, risque et incertitude : analyse des comportements individuels et des investissements des entreprises
No full textThis thesis for the accreditation to supervise research presents my work from 2011 to 2018,which focused on the individuals’ behaviours faced with a risk and the innovative firms’ in-vestments. First, the individual’s behaviour is estimated from the stated preference methods.The impact of information and several tax and regulatory devices (tax, subsidy and standard)is then examined in order to determine public health and/or environmental policies that areeffective in encouraging individuals to adopt behaviour that reduces the risk studied. Threerisks are analyzed : setting up home confinement to fight against an influenza epidemic ; theuse of plastic water bottles generating pollution and waste ; and the use of vehicles with highgreenhouse gas emissions increasing air pollution. Then, using the theory of real options andBayesian methods, the behaviour of innovative firms in their investment choices (reversibleor irreversible), acquisition of information and communication (lobbying) is studied. The im-portance of the firm’s leadership preferences, the effect of the precautionary principle and theliability rules on these choices, as well as the demand uncertainty and ambiguity on the levelof market competition, are then deepenedCe mémoire d’Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches présente mes travaux de 2011 à 2018qui ont porté sur les comportements des individus face à un risque et sur les choix d’investissement des entreprises innovantes. Tout d’abord, le comportement individuel est estimé à partir des méthodes de préférences déclarées. L’impact de l’information et de plusieurs dispositifs fiscaux et réglementaires (taxe, subvention et norme) est alors examiné afin de déterminer les politiques publiques de santé et/ou environnementales efficaces pour inciter les individus à adopter un comportement réduisant le risque étudié. Trois comportements affectant l’exposition au risque sont analysés : la mise en place du confinement à domicile afin de lutter contre une épidémie de grippe ; l’utilisation de bouteilles d’eau en plastique générant de la pollution et des déchets ; et l’usage de véhicules à fortes émissions de gaz à effet de serre accroissant la pollution de l’air. Ensuite, le comportement des entreprises innovantes dans leurs choix d’investissement(réversible ou irréversible), d’acquisition d’information et de communication (lobbying) est étudié en utilisant la théorie des options réelles et les méthodes bayésiennes. L’importance des préférences des dirigeants de ces entreprises, l’effet du principe de précaution et des règles de responsabilité sur ces choix, ainsi que celui de l’incertitude sur la demande et de l’ambiguïté sur le niveau de concurrence du marché, sont alors approfondis
L'information influence-elle le comportement de réduction d'énergie des ménages ?
No full textInternational audienceDespite several financial aids intended to promote the energy transition, the French people continue to buy energy-intensive products and are not interested in improving the energy performance of their homes. We propose a new measure which consists of provision of information to change individual behaviour. Currently, health and the environment are the prime concerns and we propose to encourage individuals to reduce their energy consumption by informing them of the environmental and health consequences linked to energy consumption. To test the validity of our proposal, we use the willingness to pay for more energy efficient equipment and thermal insulation. We conducted an online survey which included messages on the link between environment-energy and health-energy. We showed that it affected households' energy behaviour. We compared this strategy with policies already in place. We found that policies that combined provision of information with a subsidy, increase sales of goods that reduce energy consumption and was the best option from a social welfare perspective.Malgré plusieurs aides financières destinées à favoriser la transition énergétique, les Français continuent d'acheter des produits énergivores et ne sont pas intéressés par l'amélioration de la performance énergétique de leur logement. Nous proposons une nouvelle mesure qui consiste à fournir des informations pour changer le comportement individuel. Actuellement, la santé et l'environnement sont au cœur des préoccupations et nous proposons d'inciter les particuliers à réduire leur consommation d'énergie en les informant des conséquences environnementales et sanitaires liées à la consommation d'énergie. Pour tester la validité de notre proposition, nous utilisons le consentement à payer pour des équipements plus économes en énergie et une isolation thermique. Nous avons mené une enquête en ligne qui comprenait des messages sur le lien entre environnement-énergie et santé-énergie. Nous avons montré qu'elle affectait le comportement énergétique des ménages. Nous avons comparé cette stratégie avec les politiques déjà en place. Nous avons constaté que les politiques qui combinent information et subvention, augmentent les ventes de biens qui réduisent la consommation d'énergie et constituent la meilleure option du point de vue du bien-être social
How do travellers respond to health and environmental policies to reduce air pollution?
No full textInternational audienceDespite the various measures taken to reduce air pollution in France, the French continue to use high-emission vehicles. We propose to evaluate the willingness to pay (WTP) for four means of transport: two high-emission vehicles (diesel taxi and diesel personal vehicle) and two low-emission vehicles (rented electric vehicle and public transport). Successive messages revealing the effects of air pollution on health and the environment are provided to individuals in a different order. The information conveyed changes both of the WTP of individuals and of their choices. However, the use of high-emission vehicles has not diminished , personal vehicles remain the most popular. Using data collected from our survey, a multinomial logit model is used to determine individual choices. We find that improving individuals' confidence in air pollution recommendations would be a good way to lead them to choose low-emission rather than high-emission means of transport. Moreover, these estimates also indicate that individuals who attach great importance to comfort are less likely to choose low-emission vehicles than those who value price above other factors. Individual interest can therefore prevail over collective interest, thus verifying the theory of the tragedy of the commons. Different policies (taxes, subsidies, or standard) to encourage people to adopt low-emission vehicles are then tested
L'acceptabilité du risque de décès dans le traitement des maladies respiratoires en France
No full textInternational audienceBackgroundThe costs associated with respiratory illnesses in the French healthcare budget continue to rise. However, pharmaceutical companies and research centres are continuously developing new treatments. Consequently, accepting these treatments, which necessitates the acceptance of the mortality risk associated with their use, represents a significant economic and public health issue. Our study aims to assess this acceptance.MethodsThe data were obtained from an online questionnaire completed by 315 respondents located in France during June and July 2019. The standard gamble method was employed to ascertain the acceptability of risk. This method quantifies the ‘disutility’ of a health state by evaluating the extent to which an individual is willing to accept a specific mortality risk in exchange for avoiding the state.ResultsThe study demonstrated that individuals, irrespective of their personal characteristics, were willing to accept a treatment with an average mortality risk of less than 19%. The findings revealed discrepancies between individuals’ perceptions of mortality and actual risks.ConclusionsIn France, it is incumbent upon public decision-makers and research centres to ensure that treatment-related mortality rates remain below 19% so that patients readily accept treatment, irrespective of their personal characteristics. In addition, they should provide further information on the risks associated with treating respiratory diseases to avoid a discrepancy between the mortality risks perceived by individuals and the actual risks.Les coûts liés aux maladies respiratoires dans le budget des soins de santé français ne cessent d'augmenter. Cependant, les laboratoires pharmaceutiques et les centres de recherche développent en permanence de nouveaux traitements. Dès lors, l'acceptation de ces traitements, qui passe par l'acceptation du risque de mortalité associé à leur utilisation, représente un enjeu économique et de santé publique important. Notre étude vise à évaluer cette acceptation.Les méthodes utiliséesLes données ont été obtenues à partir d'un questionnaire en ligne rempli par 315 répondants situés en France durant les mois de juin et juillet 2019. La méthode du pari standard a été employée pour vérifier l'acceptabilité du risque. Cette méthode quantifie la « désutilité » d'un état de santé en évaluant dans quelle mesure un individu est prêt à accepter un risque de mortalité spécifique en échange de l'évitement de cet état.Résultats de l'étudeL'étude a démontré que les individus, indépendamment de leurs caractéristiques personnelles, étaient prêts à accepter un traitement présentant un risque de mortalité moyen inférieur à 19 %. Les résultats ont révélé des divergences entre les perceptions de la mortalité par les individus et les risques réels.ConclusionsEn France, il incombe aux décideurs publics et aux centres de recherche de veiller à ce que les taux de mortalité liés aux traitements restent inférieurs à 19 % afin que les patients acceptent facilement le traitement, quelles que soient leurs caractéristiques personnelles. En outre, ils devraient fournir davantage d'informations sur les risques liés au traitement des maladies respiratoires afin d'éviter un décalage entre les risques de mortalité perçus par les individus et les risques réel
A Theory of Child Protection against Kidnapping
No full textThis paper studies the microeconomics of child vulnerability to kidnapping in an environment where child protection is produced through a private effort, a public investment and a foreign aid. We first show that in absence of public investment and foreign aid, private investment in child protection may exhibit a vicious cycle of rising child's vulnerability, which justify public production of child safety resources on efficiency grounds. However, the introduction of a redistributive taxation to finance public investment may lead to a reduction of the global child protection, and then to an increase of the number of kidnapped children. In addition, richer families prefer private production of child safety resources to public production, while poorer families are in favour of public production. In this context, a foreign help is useful to deal with this disagreement. Nevertheless, foreign aid may raise an aid dependency. We then conclude that State and international organisms have a duty to assist households for building a protective environment. However, State's policy and foreign aid have to be chosen with care in order to avoid crowding out the parents' effort, and create and aid dependency
Manufacturing Doubt
No full textIn their persistent fight to affect regulation, firms have developed specific strategies to exploit scientific uncertainty. They have spent large amounts of money to generate and publicize favorable scientific findings, to discredit and downplay unfavorable ones and to shape the public’s perceptions through large-scale communication campaigns. We develop a new model to study the interplay between scientific uncertainty, firms’ communication and public policies. The government is benevolent but populist and maximizes social welfare as perceived by citizens. The industry can provide costly evidence that its activity is not harmful. Citizens incorrectly treat the industry’s information on par with scientific knowledge. We characterize the industry’s optimal communication policy. As scientists become increasingly convinced that the industrial activity is harmful, firms first devote more and more resources to reassure people. When scientists’ beliefs reach a critical threshold, however, the industry stops its efforts abruptly. We then study the impact of firms’ communication on scientific funding. A populist government may, perversely, want to support research to better allow firms to miscommunicate. Populist policies can entail significant welfare losses. Establishing an independent funding agency always reduces these losses and may lead to under- or over- investment in research with respect to the first-best
Innovation and information acquisition under time inconsistency and uncertainty
No full textInternational audienceWhen an agent invests in new industrial activities, he has alimited initial knowledge on his project's returns. Acquiringinformation allows him both to reduce the uncertainty on thedangerousness of this project and to limit potential damages onpeople health and on the environment that it might cause. In thispaper, we study whether there exist situations where the agentdoes not acquire information. We find that an agent withtime-consistent preferences, as well as an agent with hyperbolicones will acquire information unless its cost exceeds the directbenefit they could get with this information. Nevertheless, ahyperbolic agent may remain strategically ignorant and, when hedoes acquire information, he will acquire less than a timeconsistent type. Moreover, a hyperbolic discounting type whobehaves as a time-consistent agent in the future is more inclinedto stay ignorant. We then emphasize that this strategic ignorancedepends on the degree of the information's precision. Finally, weanalyse the role that existing liability rules could play as anincentive to acquire information under uncertainty and regardingthe form of the agent's preferences
Are consumers concerned about plastic water bottles environmental impact?
No full textInternational audienceAlthough plastic induces environmental damages, almost all water bottles are made from plastic. However, these damages are more or less significant according to the plastic used. This study evaluates the consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for different plastics used for water packaging. Successive messages emphasizing the characteristics of plastic are delivered to participants allowing explaining information influence on the consumers' WTP. We find that information has a significant effect on WTP. The participants' WTP for plastic bottles tends to increase after information emphasizing that the related plastic bottles has no negative impact on the environment, and to decrease with information on its negative impact. Using a fixed effect panel model, we show that there is a significant premium for recycled plastic bottles except when biodegradable plastic bottles are present on the market. We compare the welfare effects of regulatory policies allowing reducing environmental damages of plastic water bottles. We find that information campaign on plastic bottles issues is the best policy. But it is difficult to implement it in practice. Then we discuss about other environmental policies and tools which could be applied in order to reduce plastic water bottles negative impact on the environment
Are consumers concerned about plastic water bottles environmental impact?
No full textInternational audienceAlthough plastic induces environmental damages, almost all water bottles are made from plastic. However, these damages are more or less significant according to the plastic used. This study evaluates the consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for different plastics used for water packaging. Successive messages emphasizing the characteristics of plastic are delivered to participants allowing explaining information influence on the consumers' WTP. We find that information has a significant effect on WTP. The participants' WTP for plastic bottles tends to increase after information emphasizing that the related plastic bottles has no negative impact on the environment, and to decrease with information on its negative impact. Using a fixed effect panel model, we show that there is a significant premium for recycled plastic bottles except when biodegradable plastic bottles are present on the market. We compare the welfare effects of regulatory policies allowing reducing environmental damages of plastic water bottles. We find that information campaign on plastic bottles issues is the best policy. But it is difficult to implement it in practice. Then we discuss about other environmental policies and tools which could be applied in order to reduce plastic water bottles negative impact on the environment
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