Self-Compassion Moderates the Effect of Contingent Self-Esteem on Well-Being:Evidence from Cross-Sectional Survey and Experiment

Contingent self-esteem captures the fragile nature of self-esteem and is often regarded as suboptimal to psychological functioning.Self-compassion is another important self-related concept assumed to promote mental health and well-being.However,research on the relation of self-compassion to contingent self-esteem is lacking.Two studies were conducted to explore the role of selfcompassion,either as a personal characteristic or an induced mindset,in influencing the effects of contingent self-esteem on well-being.Study 1 recruited 256 Chinese college students(30.4%male,mean age=21.72 years)who filled out measures of contingent self-esteem,self-compassion,and well-being.The results found that self-compassion moderated the effect of contingent self-esteem on well-being.In Study 2,a sample of 90 Chinese college students(34%male,mean age=18.39 years)were randomly assigned to either a control or self-compassion group.They completed baseline trait measures of contingent self-esteem,self-compassion,and self-esteem.Then,they were led to have a 12-min break(control group)or listen to a 12-min self-compassion audio(self-compassion group),followed by a social stress task and outcome measures.The results demonstrated the effectiveness of the brief self-compassion training and its moderating role in influencing the effects of contingent self-esteem on negative affects after the social stress task.This research provides implications that to equip with a self-compassionate mindset could lower the risk of the impairment of well-being associated with elements of contingent selfesteem,which involves a fragile sense of self-worth.It may also provide insights into the development of an“optimal selfesteem”and the improvement of well-being.

Estimating the value of a statistical life in China: A contingent valuation study in six representative cities

The value of a statistical life(VSL)is a crucial tool for monetizing health impacts.To explore the VSL in China,this study examines people’s willingness to pay(WTP)to reduce death risk from air pollution in six representative cities in China based on face-to-face contingent valuation interviews(n=3936)from March 7,2019 to September 30,2019.The results reveal that the WTP varied from CNY 455 to 763 in 2019(USD 66-111),corresponding to a VSL range of CNY 3.79-6.36 million(USD 549395-921940).The VSL in China in 2019 is estimated to be CNY 4.76 million(USD 689659).The statistics indicate that monthly expenditure levels,environmental concerns,risk attitudes,and assumed market acceptance,which have seldom been dis‐cussed in previous studies,significantly impact WTP and VSL.These findings will serve as a reference for ana‐lyzing mortality risk reduction benefits in future research and for policymaking.

Preserving environmental quality of ecotourism sites through community participation in Purulia District of West Bengal,India

The importance of valuing environmental resources,especially in ecotourism sites,has become increasingly important over the last two decades.Ecotourism is now considered as an important source of livelihood of local stakeholders in backward regions.Therefore,the preservation of ecotourism sites through community participation seems very important to maintain continued flow of tourists.This study aimed at recognizing the importance of community participation for the preservation of ecotourism sites.For this,this study executed a survey based on non-probability sampling in two ecotourism sites(Garpanchkot and Baranti)covering 100 respondents in Purulia District,West Bengal of India.The central issue of this study was to assess the tendency of community participation for the conservation of ecotourism sites and find the optimum condition for offering participatory labour time.This study showed that the participation of young people is high,and the majority of respondents are aware of the importance in protecting ecotourism sites.Because respondents were too poor to offer money,the contingent valuation method(CVM)was used to elicit their willingness to pay(WTP)participatory labour time for the conservation of ecotourism sites.Respondents’age,income,education level,caste,and their perceived environmental quality had significant relationship with their WTP participatory labour time by applying the ordinary least square(OLS)model.It was found that the mean WTP participatory labour time of each respondent in a month is approximately 3.64 h.The significance of this study is that community participation can improve the sense of belonging,trust,and credibility of ecotourism sites,making them more appreciative of the value and protection of these sites.

两期交换经济Contingent资产市场的指标公式

给出了均衡流形的定向，推导出了两期交换经济Contingent资产市场的指标公式，并证明了该资产市场的均衡存在．从而证实了M．Magill“当均衡流形可定向，且Incometransfers矩阵V（p,s）是满秩阵时，可以得到定向映射度的指标公式”的推测．

Measuring Recreational Value of World Heritage Sites Based on Contingent Valuation Method:A Case Study of Jiuzhaigou

World heritage possesses various kinds of use value and non-use value. Measuring the recreational value of world heritage sites is a key issue in the heritage tourism. This paper employs Contingent Valuation Method (CVM), which is an evaluation instrument on the basis of tourists′ attitude and preference, to measure the recreational value of Jiuzhaigou, one of the World Natural Heritage sites in China, and analyzes the biases in the survey. The results show that: 1) In 2009, Jiuzhaigou′s recreational value was 3.46×108 yuan (RMB), and the per capita Willingness to Pay (WTP) was 137.31 yuan by CVM. Compared with the results of other methods, this result is significantly low. 2) Among the factors that influence Jiuzhaigou tourists′ WTP, psychological perception factors have the greatest effect while demographic and socio-economic characteristics have a small effect on WTP. 3) The virtuality in CVM creates biases both from CVM itself and in the procedures that CVM was implemented. The former includes hypothetical bias, information bias, protest response bias, and strategic bias; and the latter includes the questionnaire design, population and sample definition, sampling and data processing. The paper analyses those biases and illustrates their potential in-fluences on the accuracy of CVM measurement. 4) Although there are various defects in CVM measurement, it is still an effective valuation method.

CONE-DIRECTED CONTINGENT DERIVATIVES AND GENERALIZED PREINVEX SET-VALUED OPTIMIZATION

By using cone-directed contingent derivatives, the unified necessary and sufficient optimality conditions are given for weakly and strongly minimal elements respectively in generalized preinvex set-valued optimization.

Assessing the Economic Value of Vernacular Architecture of Mountain Regions Using Contingent Valuation

Human pressure on mountain resources poses certain threats to their natural and man-made environment. Although there are many parameters involved, one of the driving forces behind this situation is the emphasis given so far only to the market value of mountain goods and services, ignoring the true social and environmental costs of using mountain resources. Towards this direction, the use of non-market valuation techniques could prove to be beneficial. Bearing in mind the above remarks, the paper presents an application of the Contingent Valuation Method, which aims at estimating the monetary value of a mountain settlement’s vernacular architecture, namely Metsovo. For this purpose, the survey focuses on Metsovo visitors’ willingness to pay a single annual voluntary contribution to an institution that would be founded in order to undertake all necessary actions required to preserve the town’s traditional character. The results are very promising and indicate that vernacular architecture holds a significant economic value that could justify the implementation of appropriate policies towards the protection of vernacular settlements in mountain areas.

Estimation of conservation value of myrtle(Myrtus communis)using a contingent valuation method:a case study in a Dooreh forest area,Lorestan Province,Iran

Background： Around 2000 plant species occur naturally in Lorestan Province of which 250 species are medicinal and myrtle is one of them. Myrtle is a shrub whose leaves and fruits have medicinal value and thus, if managed and harvested properly, could produce sustained economic benefits. In recent years, however, over half of the myrtle site areas was destroyed, due to inappropriate management and excessive harvesting practices. Thus, coming up with a practical harvesting approach along with identifying those factors damaging the sites, seems to be very crucial. Methods： In our investigation, we calculated the conservation value per hectare of myrtle in the Dooreh forest area in Lorestan Province. Using the Contingent Valuation （CV） and Double Bounded Dichotomous Choice （DBDC） methods, we determined the willingness to pay （VVTP） for myrtle conservation. The VVTP was estimated with a Iogit model for which indices were obtained based on a maximum precision criterion. Results： The results showed that 86.67 per cent of people were willing to pay for the conservation of these myrtle sites. Average monthly WTP per family was calculated as $0.79. The annual conservation value in terms of WTP for the preservation of the myrtle sites in Dooreh was estimated as $102,525. Among the variables of the model presented, education had a positive impact, while the amount proposed for payment and family size had a negative impact on the WTP. Conclusions： Our estimate of the value of myrtle conservation should provide justification for policy makers and decision making bodies of natural resources to implement policies in order to conserve the natural sites of this species more effectively.

Contingent convertible lease modeling and credit risk management

The main objective of this study is to determine a lease agreement to finance an investment project and a solution for managing credit risk.This study investigates three types of contingent leases to reduce the costs associated with bankruptcy and compensate for the lessor’s position.A leasing defaultable contract allows the lessor to obtain the rent that will be recovered if the lessee defaults.A leasing convertible contract can be automatically converted into shares when certain default conditions related to the cash flows generated by the firm are met.These conditions are triggered by the ratio of the firm’s value and leasing payments.A Defaultable-Convertible-Leasing contract with a payback option grants the lessor the right but not the obligation to convert the remaining lease payments into stocks or to break up the contract and pick up the rented equipment when the firm reaches the default threshold.These contracts are motivated by contributing to the range of risk-management strategies by adding more flexibility to standard leasing contracts and contingent rents.Closed-form securities pricing solutions are set forward in a dynamic model for firms with existing assets and a growth option financed by shares and a contingent lease.Risk-neutral pricing theory and the backward induction method are used to determine the pricing of corporate securities.Numerical analysis shows that leasing convertible contracts and defaultable-convertible contracts with payback options impact the service value of the leased asset,maturity,and inefficiencies resulting from insolvency and asset substitution.An optimal conversion rate reduces inefficiencies,thus making the leasing convertible contract and defaultable-convertible-leasing contract with payback option a reliable solution to ensure business continuity and loss coverage of the leasers upon default.

The Natural Forest Protection Program in China： A Contingent Valuation Study in Heilongjiang Province

In 1998, the Chinese Government implemented the NFPP （Natural Forest Protection Program）, which included logging restrictions, protected areas, replanting, and a range of other policies aimed at safeguarding the state of the country＇s forests and reducing the risk of erosion and flooding. A second phase of this program is currently being discussed. In this paper, contingent valuation is used to estimate the WTP （willingness to pay） for maintaining the program among the inhabitants in Heilongjiang Province in northern China. The results show that, even with fairly conservative assumptions, the aggregated WTP for maintaining the program for another five years is some 3.24 billion yuan per year. This can be compared with the current cost of the Program in the province, which is some 1.57 billion yuan per year.

Sizing of STATCOM to Enhance Voltage Stability of Power Systems for Normal and Contingency Cases

The electric power infrastructure that has served huge loads for so long is rapidly running up against many limitations. Out of many challenges it is to operate the power system in secure manner so that the operation constraints are fulfilled under both normal and contingent conditions. Smart grid technology offers valuable techniques that can be deployed within the very near future or which are already deployed nowadays. Flexible AC Transmission Systems (FACTS) devices have been introduced to solve various power system problems. In literature, most of the methods proposed for sizing the FACTS devices only consider the normal operating conditions of power systems. Consequently, some transmission lines are heavily loaded in contingency case and the system voltage stability becomes a power transfer-limiting factor. This paper presents a technique for determining the proper rating/size of FACTS devices, namely the Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM), while considering contingency cases. The paper also verifies that the weakest bus determined by eigenvalue and eigenvectors method is the best location for STATCOM. The rating of STATCOM is specified according to the required reactive power needed to improve voltage stability under normal and contingency cases. Two case system studies are investigated: a simple 5-bus system and the IEEE 14-bus system. The obtained results verify that the rating of STATCOM can be determined according to the worst contingency case, and through proper control it can still be effective for normal and other contingency cases.

Estimating the Outdoor Recreational Value of Lavizan Jungle Park of Tehran Using Contingent Valuation Method (CV)

Natural resources and its condition have always had a key role in economic and social developments of different societies around the world and these resources are considered as natural capital and bankroll of economic growth and development for every country. In the present study, we have evaluated the outdoor recreational value of Lavizan Jungle Park of Tehran and its visitors’ willingness to pay per visit (WTP) by using Contingent Valuation method (CV) and two-dimensional choice questionnaires. We used 125 questionnaires and logit model in order to evaluate the WTP. The purpose of this study is to measure individuals’ willingness to pay for visiting and preserving the environment of Lavizan Park as well as indicating the relationship between influential factors on their WTP. Estimating the value of natural resources is very important in making environmental preservation policies because preserving these natural attractions, as a part of ecotourism, is highly important. JEL Classification: Q29, Q51, C25.

THE TURNPIKE IN DYNAMIC STOCHASTIC ECONOMIC GROWTH MODELS FOR STATE－CONTINGENT CAPITAL STOCKS

A stochastic economic growth model may be transformed into a deterministic economic growth model with an infiaite dimentional Banach space of state-contingent capital stocks [6]. This paper proves that under the framework, the stochastic analogUes of the asymptotic turnpike theorems in the standard deterministic economic growth model [5] will continue tO hold if we assume that essentially smooth programs satisfy uniformly essentially dominant diagonal condition.

Contingent negative variation of mood disorder patients

Studies on brain-evoked potential and contingent negative variation （CNV） in mood disorder remain controversial. To date, no CNV difference between unipolar and bipolar depression has been reported. Brain-evoked potentials were measured in the present study to analyze CNV in three subtypes of mood disorder （mania, unipolar depression, and bipolar depression）, and these results were compared with normal controls. In the mania group, CNV amplitude B was greater than in controls, and the depression group exhibited lower CNV amplitude B and smaller A-S＇2 area, and prolonged post-imperative negative variation latency. The CNV comparison between unipolar and bipolar depression found that the prolonged post-imperative negative variation latency was only in unipolar depression. These results suggest that prolonged post-imperative negative variation latency is a characteristic of unipolar depression, and CNV amplitude change is a state characteristic of mood disorder patients.

Arbitrage-free interval of American contingent claims under proportional transaction cost

In a general continuous-time market model with proportional transaction costs, we derive the range of arbitrage-free prices of American contingent claims. Using a martingale approach, we obtain the upper and the lower hedging price of American contingent claims.

The Domination for Evaluation of the Contingent Claims by Nonlinear Generator

In this paper,through applying the result of backward stochastic differential equations,it investigates a domination for pricing of the contingent claims by the use of nonlinear infinitesimal generator of process X. This domination provides a guide for valuing the price of the position on the financial market.

The Application of Contingent Value Method in Forest Recreational Value Evaluation of Nature Reserve

Through the survey of National Nature Reserve of Tianmu Mountain,based on relevant data of tourists of Tianmu Mountain over the years,the paper had analyzed some problems about the application of contingent value method(CVM) in forest recreational value evaluation.Then,it had evaluated the forest recreational value of National Nature Reserve of Tianmu Mountain in 2007 and obtained evaluation results.Through the statistics of tourists' payment targets,it had calculated the payment value of each function of Tianmu Nature Reserve.The functions were appreciating landscape,exercising,visiting historical sites,photographing,scientific research,picnic and camping,and religion ranking in order from higher to lower value.In terms of nonuse value,existence value was slightly higher than option value and heritage value.It could be known from above research that Tianmu Mountain had great tourism development potential.Finally,it had proposed some suggestions for publicity,project setting and artificial landscape construction.

Development of contingent valuation method in evaluating non-market values of resources and environment in China

The contingent valuation method （CVM） is one of the main methods for evaluating non-market values of resources. It originated in the United States and was introduced into China during the 1980s and 1990s. However, application of CVM in China is highly controversial based on three primary aspects： （I） the appropriate guidelines for CVM; （2） the elicitation techniques for willingness to pay （WTP）; and （3） reliability and validity testing of CVM. The major objectives of this paper are to i^eview the recem devel- opments pertaining to guidelines, elicitation techniques, and reliability and validity testing for application of CVM, and to summa- rize the limitations of and measures for improving application of CVM in China. The applicability of CVM in China is discussed to enhance the future development of CVM in China.

The Combined Application of WTP and WTA in Contingent Valuation Methods

The In most contingent valuation (CV) studies, WTP (Willingness to pay) and WTA (Willingness to accept) were often used separately, so protesting or no response or even babbling answers are increasing, and the debate persists over the reliability of CV in economic policy analysis. In order to improve the reliability of CV, WTP and WTA is used syn-chronously to estimate the restoration cost of Maqu grassland ecosystem. Data were partly from questionnaire survey, and partly from interviews and authorities. Before conclusions were derived, we assumed these data that came from interviews and authorities were right. The main result is: If we assumed that the degraded grassland of Maqu needs 10 years to be restored, and divided the restoring period into two stages, then the restoration cost was 0.85 × 108 RMB per year in former 4 years, 0.022 × 108 RMB per year in latter 6 years. The total cost of Maqu grassland restoration was 3.62 × 108 RMB. For all the costs of restoration, WTA occupied 94% and WTP only occupied 6%, suggesting that local grassland degradation was mainly caused by overgrazing and that the overloading livestock must be eliminated in order to achieve restoration successfully. Our research also showed that combining WTP and WTA in contingent valuation is very useful in estimating the cost of environmental improvement projects. Of course, whether these results are right or not, further researches are needed in the future, especially for the actual number of livestock in Maqu grassland.

The Contingent Valuation Method for Thessaloniki＇s Aesthetic Pollution in Greece

The purpose of this study is to provide an evaluation of the possible criteria used by the people of Thessaloniki for the evaluation of public goods and the investigation of the benefits of the conservation and restoration of city structures affected by carbon monoxide. These benefits are expressed in monetary units by using the CVM （Contingent Valuation Method）. The maintenance of the urban environment often entails excessive costs paid by the people through taxation. A city free of aesthetic pollution results in an increase in tourism. A portion of taxation paid by the citizens is allocated to cleaning the city. An increase in tourism provides the government with additional revenue through VAT （Value Added Taxes）. The main findings show that in a large proportion, 28% of the interviewees are willing to pay, but those that are willing to pay significant amounts tend to prefer mild interventions to the buildings, while those （42%） that agree with minimal to null amount demand radical intervention. The latter group, also, considers any contribution of theirs to restoration as unfair, judging that this expenditure should be covered exclusively by the State. Last but not least, from a sociopsychological point of view, this attitude could be attributed to extreme personalities which tend to prefer more holistic and direct solutions （i.e., no mixed strategy involving people and the State is acceptable by interviewees who considered themselves as having no further obligations after regular tax-paying）; as a result, they think that the State is exclusively responsible to resolve the situation.