The Effect of Trust on Public Support for Biotechnology: Evidence from the U.S. Biotechnology Study, 1997-1998
University of Missouri Department of Agricultural Economics Working Paper No. AEWP2002-1
22 Pages Posted: 21 Apr 2003
There are 2 versions of this paper
The Effect of Trust on Public Support for Biotechnology: Evidence from the U.S. Biotechnology Study, 1997-1998
The Effect of Trust on Public Support for Biotechnology: Evidence from the U.S. Biotechnology Study, 1997-1998
Date Written: September 3, 2002
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which trust directly affects public support for biotechnology, particularly in applications to food production and genetic modification of crop plants. Unlike previous research in which trust is assumed to be exogenous, this paper posits that trust is endogenously determined. An econometric model is developed that controls for the endogeneity of trust using instrumental variable and selection correction techniques. Using data from the U.S. Biotechnology Study, this study finds that the effect of trust on public support is substantially stronger than previous estimates.
Keywords: Biotechnology, trust, public support, risk communication
JEL Classification: Q13, Q16, Q18
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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