Abstract
We assess how investors’ willingness-to-pay (WTP) for sustainable investments responds to the impact of those investments, using a framed field experiment. While investors have a substantial WTP for sustainable investments, they do not pay more for more impact. This also holds for dedicated impact investors. When investors compare several sustainable investments, their WTP responds to differences in impact but not to the absolute level of impact. Investors experience positive emotions when choosing sustainable investments, irrespective of investments’ impact. Our findings suggest that the WTP for sustainable investments is driven by an emotional rather than a calculative valuation of impact.
Kölbel, Julian