Application of Multi-attribute Stated Preference fMethods and Conjoint Analysis in Agricultural Economics in Japan 一From the Latter Half of the 1990s to 2005一

摘要

The purpose of this paper, which is the English version of Aizaki (2005b, chap.3), is to assemble topics related to agriculture and rural areas that were treated using multi-attribute stated preference methods and conjoint analysis in Japan and to elucidate the features of these studies and further relevant issues in Japan. In this paper, multi-attribute stated preference methods include choice experiments, contingent ranking, contingent rating, and paired comparisons (Bateman et aL, 2002) that are based on discrete choice models. On the other hand, conjoint analysis implies traditional conjoint analysis (e.g., Louviere, 1988). The following three research areas are reviewed in this paper:(1)consumer research including consumers' valuation of agricultural product characteristics and food safety; (2) farm management research including farmers' valuation of new technologies, inputs and farmer support services, and farmers' decision-making related to farmland use; and (3) rural planning research including environmental valuation related to agriculture and rural areas, and the valuation of a plan for constructing facilities.