February, 2002
Abstract
Because of its capacity to measure the value of intangible benefits, contingent valuation promises to become a useful tool in the evaluation of cultural policies, programs and facilities. Although CVM has been widely used for valuing non-market goods its application to the measurement of cultural goods has been limited. Several challenges arise, particularly when the methodology is used to estimate costs and benefits for the evaluation of cultural policies and programs. The paper highlights some of these challenges and illustrates how they may be addressed with reference to a recent Australian application of CVM to value benefits derived from mandatory broadcast of domestic television programs. The case study offers an insight on the potential for a wider application of the methodology to evaluate cultural policy instruments.