Inconsistent allocations of harms versus benefits may exacerbate environmental inequality.

ABSTRACT: We report five studies that examine preferences for the allocation of environmental harms and benefits. In all studies, participants were presented with scenarios in which an existing environmental inequality between two otherwise similar communities could either be decreased or increased through various allocation decisions. Our results demonstrate that despite well-established preferences toward equal outcomes, people express weaker preferences for options that increase equality when considering the allocation of environmental harms (e.g., building new polluting facilities) than when considering the allocation of environmental benefits (e.g., applying pollution-reducing technologies). We argue that this effect emerges from fairness considerations rooted in a psychological incompatibility

SUBMITTER: Makov T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7183185 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature