Abstract
This paper extends the work of Pindyck, R. S. 2012. “Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63 (3): 289–303. by taking into consideration a large class of different utility functions of economic agents. As in Pindyck, R. S. 2012. “Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63 (3): 289–303, instead of considering a social utility function that is characterized by constant relative risk aversion (C.R.R.A), we use the expo-power utility function of Saha, A. 1993. “Expo-power Utility: A ‘Flexible’ Form for Absolute and Relative Risk Aversion.” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 75 (4): 905–13. In fact, depending on the choice of the expo-power utility function parameters, we cover a diverse range of utility functions. Apart from covering the other utility functions that a C.R.R.A omits, the Expo-power utility function permits us to discern if under the other utility-regimes of economic agents, the willingness to pay remains more affected by uncertain outcomes than certain outcomes when we vary the expectation and standard deviation of the temperature’s probability distribution. Our paper has maintained the small-tailed gamma distributions of temperature and economic impact of Pindyck, R. S. 2012. “Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63 (3): 289–303. not only because they hinder infinite future welfare losses (for an exponential utility function), but because it is easy to change some moments of the distribution (jointly or holding the others fixed) while studying how uncertainty influences the willingness to pay as explained in Pindyck, R. S. 2012. “Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63 (3): 289–303.
References
Dietz, S., and N. Stern. 2008. “Why Economic Analysis Supports Strong Action on Climate Change: a Response to the Stern Review’s Critics.” Review of Environmental Economics and Policy 2 (1): 94–113. https://doi.org/10.1093/reep/ren001.Search in Google Scholar
Fisher, A. C., and U. Narain. 2003. “Global Warming, Endogenous Risk, and Irreversibility.” Environmental and Resource Economics 25 (4): 395–416. https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1025056530035.10.1023/A:1025056530035Search in Google Scholar
Kolstad, C. D. 1996a “Fundamental Irreversibilities in Stock Externalities.” Journal of Public Economics 60 (2): 221–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/0047-2727(95)01521-3.Search in Google Scholar
Kolstad, C. D. 1996b. “Learning and Stock Effects in Environmental Regulation: The Case of Greenhouse Gas Emissions.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 31 (1): 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1006/jeem.1996.0028.Search in Google Scholar
IPCC. 2007. “Mitigation of Climate Change.” Summary for Policymakers 10.Search in Google Scholar
Newell, R. G., and W. A. Pizer. 2003. “Regulating Stock Externalities under Uncertainty.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 45 (2): 416–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0095-0696(02)00016-5.Search in Google Scholar
Pachauri, R. K., M. Allen, V. Barros, J. Broome, W. Cramer, and R. Christ. 2014. Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2000. “Irreversibilities and the Timing of Environmental Policy.” Resource and Energy Economics 22 (3): 233–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0928-7655(00)00033-6.Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2002. “Optimal Timing Problems in Environmental Economics.” Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control 26 (9): 1677–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0165-1889(01)00090-2.Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2007. “Uncertainty in Environmental Economics.” Review of Environmental Economics and Policy 1 (1): 45–65. https://doi.org/10.1093/reep/rem002.Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2011a. “Fat Tails, Thin Tails, and Climate Change Policy.” Review of Environmental Economics and Policy 5 (2): 258–74. https://doi.org/10.1093/reep/rer005.Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2011b. “Modeling the Impact of Warming in Climate Change Economics.” In The Econommics of Climate Change (Tech. Rep.), edited by Libecap, G., and Steckel, R. University of Chicago Press.10.3386/w15692Search in Google Scholar
Pindyck, R. S. 2012. “Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy.” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 63 (3): 289–303. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeem.2011.12.001.Search in Google Scholar
Saha, A. 1993. “Expo-power Utility: A ‘Flexible’ Form for Absolute and Relative Risk Aversion.” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 75 (4): 905–13. https://doi.org/10.2307/1243978.Search in Google Scholar
Sokolov, A., P. Stone, C. Forest, R. Prinn, M. Sarofim, M. Webster, and S. Dutkiewicz. 2009. Probabilistic Forecast for 21st Century Climate Based on Uncertainties in Emissions (Without Policy) and Climate Parameters. Report No. 16.10.1175/2009JCLI2863.1Search in Google Scholar
Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K. Averyt, and H. Miller. 2007. IPCC, Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA: Cambridge University Press.Search in Google Scholar
Weitzman, M. L. 2011. Additive damages, fat-tailed climate dynamics, and uncertaindiscounting. In The economics of climate change: Adaptations past and present, 23–46. University of Chicago Press.10.7208/chicago/9780226479903.003.0002Search in Google Scholar
Wilbanks, T., P. Lankao, M. Bao, F. Berkhout, S. Cairncross, J. Ceron, M. Kapshe, R Muir-Wood, and R. Zapata-Marti. 2007. Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Search in Google Scholar
© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- On the Microfoundation of Linear Oligopoly Demand
- Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy Using an Expo-Power Utility Function
- Price Versus Quantity Competition in a Vertically Related Market with Retailer’s Effort
- Search Costs and Wage Inequality
- Product Differentiation in a Vertical Structure
- Corporate Profit Tax and Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility Under Foreign Acquisition
- Examining the Impact of Electoral Competition and Endogenous Lobby Formation on Equilibrium Policy Platforms
- Entry Deterrence and Free Riding in License Auctions: Incumbent Heterogeneity and Monotonicity
- When is Knowledge Acquisition Socially Beneficial in the Laffont–Tirole Regulatory Framework?
- Notes
- Long-Run Growth, Speed of Convergence and the Specification of Technology
- Working Time under Alternative Pay Contracts in the Ride-Sharing Industry
- Tacit Collusion with Consumer Preference Costs
- Competitively-Issued Convertible Bank Notes in a Theory of Finance: Earl Thompson Meets Fischer Black
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- On the Microfoundation of Linear Oligopoly Demand
- Uncertain Outcomes and Climate Change Policy Using an Expo-Power Utility Function
- Price Versus Quantity Competition in a Vertically Related Market with Retailer’s Effort
- Search Costs and Wage Inequality
- Product Differentiation in a Vertical Structure
- Corporate Profit Tax and Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility Under Foreign Acquisition
- Examining the Impact of Electoral Competition and Endogenous Lobby Formation on Equilibrium Policy Platforms
- Entry Deterrence and Free Riding in License Auctions: Incumbent Heterogeneity and Monotonicity
- When is Knowledge Acquisition Socially Beneficial in the Laffont–Tirole Regulatory Framework?
- Notes
- Long-Run Growth, Speed of Convergence and the Specification of Technology
- Working Time under Alternative Pay Contracts in the Ride-Sharing Industry
- Tacit Collusion with Consumer Preference Costs
- Competitively-Issued Convertible Bank Notes in a Theory of Finance: Earl Thompson Meets Fischer Black