Date of Award

5-18-2020

Document Type

Restricted Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Economics

First Advisor

Rodrigo Schneider

Abstract

Using the contingent valuation method, this study estimates the willingness to pay of business owners involved in the ecotourism industry for increased conservation of the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia. A survey was distributed to the population of interest via a web survey to not only determine the sample’s willingness to pay, but to also determine if question framing had an effect on the responses and if there were other factors that influenced the results. Focus is placed on business owners in this region because of their stake in the health of the Great Barrier Reef. The results of this study indicate that respondents express different willingness to pay values when they take on either an altruistic or individualistic viewpoint and that willingness to pay is not impacted by age, race, education, gender, or political affiliation.

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