Abstract:
Multi-attribute revealed preference data is used to investigate the heterogeneity of
tastes in a sample of kayakers, in relation to eleven whitewater sites in Ireland. The
paper focuses on a comparison of the analysis of preference heterogeneity using a
random parameter logit model and a latent class model. We assess and contrast the
evidence for the presence of a finite number of 2, 3, 4 and 5 latent preference groups
(classes), and contrast these with the presence of a continuous distribution of
parameter estimates using the random parameter logit model. Welfare estimates
associated with changes in the attributes of particular whitewater sites are also
presented, and are found to vary considerably depending on the approach taken..
