Learning to dislike safe water products: results from a randomized controlled trial of the effects of direct and peer experience on willingness to pay

Environmental Science & Technology
Jill LuotoDavid I Levine

Abstract

Low-cost point-of-use (POU) safe water products have the potential to reduce waterborne illness, but adoption by the global poor remains low. We performed an eight-month randomized trial of four low-cost household water treatment products in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Intervention households (n = 600) received repeated educational messages about the importance of drinking safe water along with consecutive two-month free trials with each of four POU products in random order. Households randomly assigned to the control group (n = 200) did not receive free products or repeated educational messages. Households' willingness to pay for these products was quite low on average (as measured by bids in an incentive-compatible real-money auction), although a modest share was willing to pay the actual or expected retail price for low-cost chlorine-based products. Furthermore, contrary to our hypotheses that both one's own personal experience and the influence of one's peers would increase consumers' willingness to pay, direct experience significantly decreased mean bids by 18-55% for three of the four products and had no discernible effect on the fourth. Neighbor experience also did not increase bids. Widespread dissemination of safe water product...Continue Reading

References

Jul 1, 1964·Behavioral Science·G M BeckerJ Marschak
Dec 26, 2006·Journal of Health Economics·Andrew E Clark, Youenn Lohéac
Mar 14, 2007·BMJ : British Medical Journal·Thomas ClasenSandy Cairncross
Jul 27, 2007·The New England Journal of Medicine·Nicholas A Christakis, James H Fowler
Jan 25, 2008·Emerging Infectious Diseases·Lauren J StockmanRobert E Quick
Sep 18, 2008·Bulletin of the World Health Organization·Cynthia Boschi-PintoKenji Shibuya
Mar 27, 2009·Environmental Science & Technology·Wolf-Peter Schmidt, Sandy Cairncross
Jan 13, 2010·The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene·Seema JainRobert E Quick

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Oct 4, 2012·Environmental Science & Technology·Joe BrownMark D Sobsey
Jun 4, 2013·Environmental Science & Technology·Laura C Sima, Menachem Elimelech
Dec 17, 2014·Tropical Medicine & International Health : TM & IH·Nusrat NajninStephen P Luby
Apr 4, 2015·Journal of Health Communication·Theresa BeltramoAndrew M Simons
Aug 2, 2015·Current Environmental Health Reports·Thomas Clasen
Oct 22, 2015·The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews·Thomas F ClasenSandy Cairncross
Jun 14, 2019·The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews·Peter von PhilipsbornEva Rehfuess
Sep 25, 2019·The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene·Farzana YeasminStephen P Luby
Jul 19, 2017·The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene·Michael RitterDaniele Lantagne
Jan 24, 2020·The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene·Feng-Jen TsaiChia-Ping Lin
Sep 10, 2021·Environmental Science & Technology·Daniel W SmithJennifer Davis

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Trending Feeds

COVID-19

Coronaviruses encompass a large family of viruses that cause the common cold as well as more serious diseases, such as the ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; formally known as 2019-nCoV). Coronaviruses can spread from animals to humans; symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties; in more severe cases, infection can lead to death. This feed covers recent research on COVID-19.

Blastomycosis

Blastomycosis fungal infections spread through inhaling Blastomyces dermatitidis spores. Discover the latest research on blastomycosis fungal infections here.

Nuclear Pore Complex in ALS/FTD

Alterations in nucleocytoplasmic transport, controlled by the nuclear pore complex, may be involved in the pathomechanism underlying multiple neurodegenerative diseases including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Dementia. Here is the latest research on the nuclear pore complex in ALS and FTD.

Applications of Molecular Barcoding

The concept of molecular barcoding is that each original DNA or RNA molecule is attached to a unique sequence barcode. Sequence reads having different barcodes represent different original molecules, while sequence reads having the same barcode are results of PCR duplication from one original molecule. Discover the latest research on molecular barcoding here.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a disease characterized by unexplained disabling fatigue; the pathology of which is incompletely understood. Discover the latest research on chronic fatigue syndrome here.

Evolution of Pluripotency

Pluripotency refers to the ability of a cell to develop into three primary germ cell layers of the embryo. This feed focuses on the mechanisms that underlie the evolution of pluripotency. Here is the latest research.

Position Effect Variegation

Position Effect Variagation occurs when a gene is inactivated due to its positioning near heterochromatic regions within a chromosome. Discover the latest research on Position Effect Variagation here.

STING Receptor Agonists

Stimulator of IFN genes (STING) are a group of transmembrane proteins that are involved in the induction of type I interferon that is important in the innate immune response. The stimulation of STING has been an active area of research in the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Here is the latest research on STING receptor agonists.

Microbicide

Microbicides are products that can be applied to vaginal or rectal mucosal surfaces with the goal of preventing, or at least significantly reducing, the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. Here is the latest research on microbicides.