Mitigating Hypothetical Bias In Stated Preference Data: Evidence From Sports Tourism

ASU Author/Contributor (non-ASU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
John Whitehead Ph.D., Professor & Department Chair (Creator)
Institution
Appalachian State University (ASU )
Web Site: https://library.appstate.edu/

Abstract: One of the major criticisms of stated preference data is hypothetical bias. Using a unique dataset of both stated and actual behavior, we test for hypothetical bias of stated preference survey responses. We consider whether respondents tend to overstate their participatory sporting event behavior ex ante when compared to their actual behavior at different registration fees. We find that stated behavior accurately predicts actual behavior at a middle level of respondent certainty, overpredicts actual behavior at a lower level of certainty, and underpredicts behavior at a higher level of certainty. This result suggests that respondent uncertainty corrections can be used to mitigate hypothetical bias and stated preference data can be used to better understand actual behavior in situations where no data exist.

Additional Information

Publication
Whitehead, J. C., Weddell, M. S. and Groothuis, P. A. (2016), MITIGATING HYPOTHETICAL BIAS IN STATED PREFERENCE DATA: EVIDENCE FROM SPORTS TOURISM. Econ Inq, 54: 605-611. doi:10.1111/ecin.12253. Publisher version of record available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ecin.12253
Language: English
Date: 2015
Keywords
sports tourism, travel, contingent valuation method

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