Bargaining over waiting time in gain and loss framed ultimatum games

We implement waiting time as a currency in an ultimatum game in an experimental laboratory study. Subjects had to split 60 minutes of waiting time. We analyze bargaining behavior in varying situations connected to waiting time as well as gain and loss framing. Different situations that follow waiting time have no influence on bargaining behavior. Regarding gain and loss framing, we do not find differences in proposers' behavior. Responders show less willingness to wait when the bargaining outcome is framed as a loss compared to being framed as a gain of time. Displaying less willingness to wait, responders show a higher propensity to risk a rejection of the proposers' offers

Carbon emissions of retail channels: the limits of available policy instruments to achieve absolute reductions

Buying the same product at the neighborhood store or at a shopping mall implies different carbon emissions. This paper quantifies carbon impacts of consumer choices of retail channel and shop location (where to buy), extending footprint assessments of product choices (what to buy). Carbon emissions of shopping situations are shown in the current situation, in a business-as-usual projection in 2020, and in policy scenarios with changed market shares of shopping situations. The analysis covers the product categories: groceries, clothing, and electronics & computers, from the shopping situations: neighborhood store, town center, discount store, shopping mall, and mail order/online selling. Stages of the product life cycle which differ between shopping situations are examined: freight transport, warehousing, store operation, and the last mile of the consumers' trip to the store. Carbon emissions of shopping situations amount to 2.7% of overall Austrian emissions in the base year. Dominant car use on the last mile substantially contributes to the overall footprint. In the business-as-usual scenario, carbon emissions from shopping situations increase by +33% until 2020, corresponding to 4.2% of the overall Austrian emissions target for 2020. Restricting shopping malls or supporting neighborhood stores could limit this increase to +25% and +20%, respectively. Facilitating online selling achieves no notable effects. The study underlines that an absolute reduction in private demand for household goods is necessary, as available policy instruments aiming at shopping situations fail to compensate the steady growth in private consumption

An experimental study of corporate social responsibility through charitable giving in Bertrand markets

We experimentally investigate a Bertrand market with homogenous goods where sellers may behave socially responsible by donating a share of their profits to an existing non-profit organization. In our experiment, we find that this Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) component is used independent of its credibility. However, market outcomes in terms of prices and profits do neither significantly differ with respect to the credibility of the CSR component nor in comparison to a market without the availability of CSR components. Moreover, prices have the main impact on purchase decisions while higher donations only affect purchase decisions when they are credible and price differences are negligible. We conclude that competition severely limits the possibility to attract customers with CSR components. Actual donations are small and the burden induced by the CSR components is shifted partly to the buyers resulting in equal profits in all treatments

Vibrational States of the Hydrogen Isotopes on Pd(111)

The ground and excited vibrational states for the three hydrogen isotopes on the Pd(111) surface have been calculated. Notable features of these states are the high degree of anharmonicity, which is most prominently seen in the weak isotopic dependence of the parallel vibrational transition, and the narrow bandwidths of these states, which imply that atomic hydrogen is localized on a particular surface site on time scales of 100 picoseconds or more. Experiments to resolve ambiguities concerning the present system are suggested.Comment: Surface Science Letters, 302, L305 (1994

Overcoming the risk of inaction from emissions uncertainty in smallholder agriculture

The potential for improving productivity and increasing the resilience of smallholder agriculture, while also contributing to climate change mitigation, has recently received considerable political attention (Beddington et al 2012). Financial support for improving smallholder agriculture could come from performance-based funding including sale of carbon credits or certified commodities, payments for ecosystem services, and nationally appropriate mitigation action (NAMA) budgets, as well as more traditional sources of development and environment finance. Monitoring the greenhouse gas fluxes associated with changes to agricultural practice is needed for performance-based mitigation funding, and efforts are underway to develop tools to quantify mitigation achieved and assess trade-offs and synergies between mitigation and other livelihood and environmental priorities (Olander 2012)

Collision Dynamics and Solvation of Water Molecules in a Liquid Methanol Film

Environmental molecular beam experiments are used to examine water interactions with liquid methanol films at temperatures from 170 K to 190 K. We find that water molecules with 0.32 eV incident kinetic energy are efficiently trapped by the liquid methanol. The scattering process is characterized by an efficient loss of energy to surface modes with a minor component of the incident beam that is inelastically scattered. Thermal desorption of water molecules has a well characterized Arrhenius form with an activation energy of 0.47{\pm}0.11 eV and pre-exponential factor of 4.6 {\times} 10^(15{\pm}3) s^(-1). We also observe a temperature dependent incorporation of incident water into the methanol layer. The implication for fundamental studies and environmental applications is that even an alcohol as simple as methanol can exhibit complex and temperature dependent surfactant behavior.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure

Has the COVID-19 pandemic strengthened confidence in managing the climate crisis? Transfer of efficacy beliefs after experiencing lockdowns in Switzerland and Austria

In the spring of 2020, countries introduced lockdowns as radical measures to deal with the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to strong disruptions of people’s everyday lives. Such drastic collective measures had previously seemed inconceivable in relation to other urgent crises, such as the climate crisis. In this paper, we ask how individual, participatory, and collective efficacy beliefs in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic transferred to efficacy beliefs regarding the climate crisis. We present comparative results from two surveys: Study 1 assesses efficacy beliefs among German-speaking Swiss residents (n = 1,016), shortly after lockdown measures were relaxed. Study 2 compares changes in efficacy beliefs among Austrian high school students (n = 113) before and after the lockdown. In Study 1, climate-related self- and participatory efficacy are enhanced by the corresponding COVID-19-related beliefs. Climate-related efficacy beliefs mediate the effect of COVID-related counterparts on climate-friendly behavior and policy support. Study 2 shows that COVID-19-related efficacy beliefs are transferred to climate-related counterparts over time, and that the transfer of participatory efficacy is moderated by perceived similarity of the two crises. Experiencing successful individual and collective action during the COVID-19 pandemic seems to inspire confidence in dealing with climate change. Underlying processes (direct transfer, consistency, awareness-raising, learning) are discussed

A social perspective on sustainable transport policy. A case study on car road pricing in Austria

The current transport system in industrialised countries is far from being sustainable, partly due to the negative impacts of motorised individual transport. Car road pricing would present a policy instrument to reduce the transport volume and to change the modal split. However, its effects go beyond the transport system itself and influence the different dimensions of sustainability, especially the social dimension. In the present paper the impacts of different car road pricing scenarios in Austria are discussed. It aims to present the operationalisation of the social dimension and its significance in relation to the other dimensions of sustainability, often represented by a trade-off. Results concerning the impacts of car road pricing on the Austrian population are discussed with regard to the feasibility and acceptance of such a measure. Different options to overcome the negative acceptance of road pricing or to reduce the trade-offs are suggested