Title: Do socio-psychological factors influence households' willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management services? Evidence from Ghana

Authors: Hamdiyah Alhassan; Felix Ankomah Asante; Martin Oteng-Ababio; Simon Bawakyillenuo

Addresses: Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Faculty of Agribusiness and Communication Sciences, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana ' Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana ' Department of Geography and Resource Development, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana ' Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER), University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana

Abstract: Generally, studies on households' willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management services by economists have concentrated on external variables which include education, income, among others, such that the effect of socio-psychological factors like attitude, social norms and perceived behavioural control are weakly understood. This study examined the effect of both external and socio-psychological factors on households' willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management services in Accra and Tamale metropolises in Ghana. The estimation results from the Tobit regression model indicated that sex of head of household, educational attainment of head of household, total household income, occupation type of head of household, level of satisfaction with solid waste collection services, attitude, subjective norm and location of household significantly influenced households' willingness-to-pay for improved solid waste management services in the entire study area. Acknowledging the fact that willingness-to-pay is dependent on different factors, the study cautions against adopting one-size fit all policies.

Keywords: solid waste management; willingness-to-pay; Tobit regression; contingent valuation method; Ghana.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGE.2017.089854

International Journal of Green Economics, 2017 Vol.11 No.3/4, pp.183 - 203

Received: 30 Oct 2017
Accepted: 12 Dec 2017
Published online: 13 Feb 2018 *

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