Collective Action to Allocate the Commons: Insights fromConsequential Stated Preference Surveys

19.10.2026 14:15 – 15:30

INSTITUTE OF ECONOMICS AND ECONOMETRICS SEMINAR

Abstract:

Disputes over common-pool resource allocations pose a significantchallenge to collective action. Yet the role of these disputes has largely beeninferred indirectly, from case studies, laboratory experiments, or comparisonsacross management regions, rather than measured directly. We link water usedata with responses to consequential stated preference surveys designed toelicit preferences for alternative water allocations for the High PlainsAquifer in Kansas. Although two-thirds of the respondents support a 16%reduction in water use, we estimate that potential water disputes lower thisfigure to just 8%. While self-interest drives these disputes, it is not thedominant explanation. Rather, heterogeneity in ideological views matters: userswho perceive water rights as private property support smaller reductions andprefer allocations based on existing rights, conditional on aquifercharacteristics. Despite these distributional conflicts, conservation planshave been successfully implemented for a subset of aquifer users; the resultsof our survey have informed these efforts.

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