| This dissertation work consists of three essays on information disclosure mechanisms, information preferences, and private provision of public goods. In Chapter 1, "Green, Greener, Greenest: Eco-label Gradation and Competition" I examine two common features of markets in which eco-label programs certify that products are "green": gradation---single programs offering multiple certification standards (e.g., platinum, gold, silver)---and competition---multiple programs vying to certify to their respective standards. I find that, depending on whether programs are sponsored by industry groups, environmental groups, or a government, they have strikingly different incentives to grade or compete. For each of the cases examined, my analysis is consistent with casual empirical evidence. In Chapter 2, "Is Ignorance Bliss? Information Avoidance and Private Provision of Public Goods", I investigate how information should be provided, and how individuals' information preferences can affect their private provision of public goods. I build a theoretical model that delivers several key findings: (1) Even if complete information about how much their efforts contribute to the public good can be acquired costlessly, individuals may still choose to avoid such information; (2) If policymakers are unaware of such behavior, they may adopt policies that yield suboptimal provision of public goods; (3) Forcing such information on individuals may yield a coordination failure, resulting in suboptimal public good provision and decreased welfare. In Chapter 3, "An Experimental Test of Willingness-to-Pay for the Resolution of Uncertainty", I conduct an economic experiment to examine whether people's willingness-to-pay (WTP) for an environmental public good can be affected by the timing and degree of uncertainty resolution. We extend conventional expected utility theory by combining anticipatory-utility-theory framework and neuroeconomic findings. I derive two sets of predictions about people's WTP under different information treatments using conventional expected utility theory and anticipatory utility theory. The experiment results are more consistent with anticipatory utility theory. |
