Inducing perspective-taking for prosocial behaviour in natural resource management

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Original languageEnglish
Article number102513
JournalJournal of Environmental Economics and Management
Volume110
Early online date12 Aug 2021
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2021
Externally publishedYes

Abstract

Natural resource management often involves social dilemmas which other-regarding preferences and pro-social behaviour can help overcome. Interventions that induce resource users to consider a perspective broader than their own may help promote pro-social behaviour. Such interventions are often applied in participatory resource management approaches. To the best of our knowledge, nonetheless, no previous study has isolated and assessed the effect of inducing perspective-taking on natural resource users’ prosocial behaviour. In this study, we do so in the context of watershed management. We conducted a lab-in-the-field experiment with downstream farmers in a Peruvian watershed. In the experiment, participants were induced to imagine the perspective of upstream farmers before deciding on a donation that can help the latter improve their well-being without compromising the water supply downstream. We find that inducing perspective-taking increases unilateral prosocial behaviour. This effect cannot fully be explained by the additional information on the social and ecological characteristics of the watershed received during the perspective-taking experience. Rather the effect of the perspective-taking intervention is likely to work by inducing other-regarding preferences. Our results contribute to the study of pro-social behaviour in natural resource management and the ways in which it could be induced by interventions targeting other-regarding preferences.

Keywords

    Environmental policy, Framed field experiment, Natural resource management, Other-regarding preferences, Perspective-taking, Prosocial behaviour, Social dilemmas

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Sustainable Development Goals

Cite this

Inducing perspective-taking for prosocial behaviour in natural resource management. / Ortiz-Riomalo, Juan Felipe; Koessler, Ann Kathrin; Engel, Stefanie.
In: Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Vol. 110, 102513, 10.2021.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Ortiz-Riomalo JF, Koessler AK, Engel S. Inducing perspective-taking for prosocial behaviour in natural resource management. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management. 2021 Oct;110:102513. Epub 2021 Aug 12. doi: 10.1016/j.jeem.2021.102513
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