Abstract
In this paper, we perform a choice experiment assessing the impact of stay-at-home policies on individual welfare. We estimate the willingness to accept compensation (WTA) for restricting non-working hours in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic. The WTA for a one-month stay-at-home policy is about US$480 per person, or 9.1 percent of Sweden's monthly per capita GDP. Stricter lockdowns require disproportionately higher compensation than more lenient ones, indicating that strict policies are cost-effective only if they are much more successful in slowing the spread of the disease. Moreover, older people have a higher WTA of staying home than the rest of the population.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Peer-reviewed scientific journal | Scandinavian Journal of Economics |
| Volume | 124 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Pages (from-to) | 340-362 |
| Number of pages | 23 |
| ISSN | 0347-0520 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2022 |
| MoE publication type | A1 Journal article - refereed |
Keywords
- 512 Business and Management
- Choice experiment
- individual welfare effects
- mental distress
- stay-at-home orders