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How Do Legislators Value Constituent’s (Statistical) Lives? COVID-19, Partisanship, and Value of a Statistical Life Analysis

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  • Landgrave, Michelangelo Geovanny

Abstract

Value of statistical life (VSL) analysis is common place in policy circles to evaluate the effectiveness of policy. As I show using a novel survey experiment with United States' state legislators, actual use of VSL analysis faces several problems. Firstly, policy preferences are inelastic, unchanging, regardless of the cost. Secondly, policy preferences are determined in large by actors' party ID. This means that VSL analysis, in practice, will either encourage policies that are too risky to too risk adverse.

Suggested Citation

  • Landgrave, Michelangelo Geovanny, 2020. "How Do Legislators Value Constituent’s (Statistical) Lives? COVID-19, Partisanship, and Value of a Statistical Life Analysis," SocArXiv n93w2, Center for Open Science.
    • Handle: RePEc:osf:socarx:n93w2
    DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/n93w2
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    1. Butler, Daniel M. & Pereira, Miguel M., 2018. "Are Donations to Charity an Effective Incentive for Public Officials?," Journal of Experimental Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 5(1), pages 68-70, April.
    2. Orley Ashenfelter, 2006. "Measuring the Value of a Statistical Life: Problems and Prospects," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(510), pages 10-23, March.
    3. Allcott, Hunt & Boxell, Levi & Conway, Jacob & Gentzkow, Matthew & Thaler, Michael & Yang, David, 2020. "Polarization and public health: Partisan differences in social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
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