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Measuring impacts of extreme weather events using the life satisfaction approach

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  • von Möllendorff, Charlotte
  • Hirschfeld, Jesko

Abstract

Extreme weather events cause harm among the aggrieved party that often goes beyond material damages. This paper studies the impact of extreme weather events on measures of self-reported life satisfaction. Focusing on Germany, we use representative panel data for 2000–2011 to study the effect of seven storm & hail events and five floods on subjective well-being in the affected NUTS 3 regions. Our results indicate that both weather experiences bear statistically significant negative externalities. Following an extreme weather event, life satisfaction is reduced by 0.020–0.027 on the 11-point scale. While the effect of storm & hail events is rather immediate in nature, the effect from floods persists much longer.

Suggested Citation

  • von Möllendorff, Charlotte & Hirschfeld, Jesko, 2016. "Measuring impacts of extreme weather events using the life satisfaction approach," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(C), pages 108-116.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:121:y:2016:i:c:p:108-116
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2015.11.013
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    1. Fluhrer, Svenja & Kraehnert, Kati, 2022. "Sitting in the same boat: Subjective well-being and social comparison after an extreme weather event," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    2. Sunbin Yoo & Junya Kumagai & Yuta Kawabata & Alexander Ryota Keeley & Shunsuke Managi, 2022. "Insuring Well-Being: Psychological Adaptation to Disasters," Economics of Disasters and Climate Change, Springer, vol. 6(3), pages 471-494, November.
    3. G. M. Mkrtchyan & I. Yu. Blam & S. Yu. Kovalev & Yu. O. Tsvelodub, 2018. "Impact of Climate Change on the Subjective Well-Being of Households in Russia," Regional Research of Russia, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 281-288, July.
    4. Johnston, David W. & Önder, Yasin Kürşat & Rahman, Muhammad Habibur & Ulubaşoğlu, Mehmet A., 2021. "Evaluating wildfire exposure: Using wellbeing data to estimate and value the impacts of wildfire," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 782-798.
    5. Lohmann, Paul & Pondorfer, Andreas & Rehdanz, Katrin, 2019. "Natural Hazards and Well-Being in a Small-Scale Island Society," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 344-353.
    6. Bartosz Wilczek, 2018. "Media use and life satisfaction: the moderating role of social events," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 65(2), pages 157-184, June.
    7. Hamid R. Oskorouchi & Alfonso Sousa‐Poza, 2021. "Floods, food security, and coping strategies: Evidence from Afghanistan," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 52(1), pages 123-140, January.
    8. Mauricio Sarrias & Benjamin Jara, 2020. "How Much Should We Pay for Mental Health Deterioration? The Subjective Monetary Value of Mental Health After the 27F Chilean Earthquake," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 843-875, March.
    9. Sekulova, Filka & van den Bergh, Jeroen C.J.M., 2016. "Floods and happiness: Empirical evidence from Bulgaria," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 51-57.
    10. Jones, Benjamin A., 2023. "Dust storms and human well-being," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    11. Marina Bravi & Marta Bottero & Federico Dell’Anna, 2024. "An Application of the Life Satisfaction Approach (LSA) to Value the Land Consumption and Ecosystem Services," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(1), pages 2988-3013, March.
    12. Jones, Benjamin A., 2017. "Invasive Species Impacts on Human Well-being Using the Life Satisfaction Index," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 250-257.
    13. Maia, Alexandre Gori & Miyamoto, Bruno César Brito & Garcia, Junior Ruiz, 2018. "Climate Change and Agriculture: Do Environmental Preservation and Ecosystem Services Matter?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 27-39.
    14. Apurba, Roy & Ilan, Noy & Harold E., Cuffe, 2021. "Income and Extratropical Cyclones in New Zealand," Working Paper Series 9472, Victoria University of Wellington, School of Economics and Finance.
    15. Aatishya Mohanty & Nattavudh Powdthavee & Cheng Keat Tang & Andrew J. Oswald, 2024. "Temperature Variability and Natural Disasters," Papers 2409.14936, arXiv.org.
    16. Ahmadiani, Mona & Ferreira, Susana, 2016. "Well-being Effects of Extreme Weather Events in the US," 2016 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Boston, Massachusetts 236259, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    17. Berlemann, Michael & Eurich, Marina, 2021. "Natural hazard risk and life satisfaction – Empirical evidence for hurricanes," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    18. Nicholas Gunby & Tom Coupé, 2023. "Weather-Related Home Damage and Subjective Well-Being," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 84(2), pages 409-438, February.
    19. Erda Wang & Nannan Kang & Yang Yu, 2017. "Valuing Urban Landscape Using Subjective Well-Being Data: Empirical Evidence from Dalian, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-20, December.
    20. Heinz Welsch, 2024. "Do National Well-Being Scores Capture Nations Ecological Resilience? Evidence for 124 Countries," Working Papers V-443-24, University of Oldenburg, Department of Economics, revised Jan 2024.
    21. Ahmadiani, Mona & Ferreira, Susana, 2021. "Well-being effects of extreme weather events in the United States," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    22. Zanhouo, Abdoul Karim & Acma, Bulent, 2021. "Impact of climate change on households welfare in Burkina Faso. Welfare decomposition analysis," Conference papers 333260, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    23. Apurba, Roy & Ilan, Noy & Harold E., Cuffe, 2021. "Income and Extratropical Cyclones in New Zealand," Working Paper Series 21117, Victoria University of Wellington, School of Economics and Finance.
    24. Tovar Reaños, Miguel A., 2021. "Floods, flood policies and changes in welfare and inequality: Evidence from Germany," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Extreme weather events; Subjective well-being; Life satisfaction; Nonmarket valuation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D61 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Allocative Efficiency; Cost-Benefit Analysis
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • Q51 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Valuation of Environmental Effects
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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