Economic analyses of household pest control for yard care in two metropolitan areas of the United States

This dissertation consists of three essays dealing with various aspects of outdoor pest control by households. Using proportion and mean comparisons, the five strategies, the money and time expenditures, and the household and yard characteristics of outdoor pest control are analyzed. Households in red cities of suburban Atlanta, Georgia are more likely to apply environmentally benign insect controls, in conjunction with synthetic pesticides, than households in blue cities of the eastern San Francisco Bay Area, California. Nonetheless, most households in both areas rely on do-it-yourself applications of synthetic pesticides to controls pests in and around their yards. Household income, gardening as a hobby, lawn care as a hobby, and the presence of a cat/dog are factors that affect a household's choice of pest control strategies and associated expenditures in blue and red cities.;Household choice of outdoor pest control strategies is investigated using a multinomial probit model. The benefits of synthetic pesticides and hiring an applicator for pest control are greater for households with higher incomes, relatively older heads, larger lawn spaces, gardening as a hobby, and pets. The benefits of synthetic pesticides are also greater for low and middle income households and households with young children but the benefits of hiring an applicator are less for male heads. The benefits of mixed controls, synthetic and environmentally friendly pesticides, are greater for households in the San Francisco Bay area who consider gardening as a hobby.;Expenditures of money and time for do-it-yourself outdoor pest control are examined using a linear econometric model. Household demand for synthetic pesticides and other controls is a function of income, lot size, lawn share, age, and the presence of young children. The demand for pest controls that households apply is income inelastic. The benefits of synthetic pesticides and environmentally friendly controls for households with young children exceed the benefits of the controls for households without them. A household allocation of time to apply pest controls is a function of income and lot size, in addition to monetary expenditures. In the San Francisco Bay area, gardening as a hobby is another important factor.