Abstract

Abstract We describe how resource economics measures the economic benefit of recreational fishing. Information about economic benefits provides one way to evaluate the social and economic consequences of a management or policy action. We divide this chapter into two parts. First, we describe random utility maximization theory, which explains fishing choices as a function of fishing site attributes, recreational fishers’ characteristics, and individual preferences. Models developed from random utility maximization theory and individual data have become the dominant approach in fisheries valuation. We emphasize that this value, though nearly always denominated in money units, is not equivalent to the actual amount of money spent on fishing. Second, we provide a pair of empirical demonstrations, one using actual fishing trip data and another using hypothetical data, based on a mail survey of license holders. We end this chapter with a discussion of using economic models to predict behaviours, frontier areas in recreation demand modelling, and integration with interdisciplinary research.

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Publication Info

Year
2025
Type
book-chapter
Pages
123-156
Citations
8
Access
Closed

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Richard T. Melstrom, Brenna Jungers, Xiang Bi et al. (2025). Resource Economics for Understanding Recreational Fishers and Fisheries. Fish & fisheries series/Fish and fisheries series (Print) , 123-156. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-99739-6_5

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DOI
10.1007/978-3-031-99739-6_5