What motivates biodiversity conservation?

Study ID sspp-2024-0024-v1

General Details

Project What motivates biodiversity conservation?
Study ID sspp-2024-0024-v1
Study Title What motivates biodiversity conservation?
Authors Nordén Anna, Gsottbauer Elisabeth, Correa Miquel
Completion Time 15 Minutes
Close Date (UTC) Nov. 30, 2024
Discipline Economics
Field Environment, Resource And Energy Economics, Experimental Economics, Behavioral Economics
Country Online (many countries)
Abstract
Loss of biodiversity is increasing at an alarming pace. Biodiversity is threatened by pollution, pesticides, deforestation, over-fishing and climate change. Incentive-based conservation polices such as conservation payments are therefore in the spotlight, both in academic and policy circles across the world. At present, there is however no systematic comparison of the effect of different incentives on conservation efforts. In this research project, we aim to evaluate the relative effectiveness of different monetary and non-monetary incentives to induce costly biodiversity conservation. For this, we will compare the effect of the different incentives in a large-scale online experiment, consisting of a real-effort slider task, in which participants will need to allocate their effort between sliders that earn income for themselves and sliders that generate a donation to a a biodiversity NGO. In addition, we elicit forecasts by academics and policy practitioners regarding the effectiveness of the treatments through a survey, allowing us to compare empirical results to expectations. This project will provide evidence to the burning question: what motivates biodiversity conservation – money or social norms?

Incentive Details

Incentive Type Based on forecast accuracy
Calculation Method
Recipient Pool Incentives are lottery-based
Lottery Percentage 1.0%

Citation
Anna, Nordén, Elisabeth, Gsottbauer, and Correa Miquel. 2024. "What motivates biodiversity conservation?." Social Science Prediction Platform. July 9. https://socialscienceprediction.org/s/ffxexy