Information Persistence and Preference Updating from Survey Feedback: Evidence from a Two-Wave Discrete Choice Experiment on Utility-Scale Solar Energy

Despite the rapidly growing deployment of renewable energy technologies, public acceptance remains a critical factor affecting implementation. Understanding how information provision shapes preferences—and particularly how individuals process and update their preferences given a time window and when presented with reminder information—is crucial for effective public policy design. Our research addresses this gap by examining information persistence and preference updating within a policy-relevant context of utility-scale solar deployment. Using a two-round survey design with embedded information treatments and discrete choice experiments (DCEs), we examine both the lasting effects of previously provided information and how preference updating occurs when new information based on the first-round outcomes becomes available. We also investigate the effectiveness of information feedback in improving willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates and preference consistency and persistency. This research contributes to both the public policy and decision-making literature by: (1) examining the temporal stability of information effects on preferences for environmental goods; (2) exploring whether prior information creates anchoring effects that persist over time, with implications for the timing and sequencing of public communications; (3) comparing the relative influence of two types of personalized feedback information on preference formation, which can guide the design of more effective public engagement strategies; (4) assessing the effectiveness of different information delivery mechanisms within discrete choice experiments, providing methodological insights for policy preference elicitation; and (5) offering practical insights for survey and DCE design to enhance welfare estimation. The findings will offer practical guidance for policymakers on optimizing information provision strategies to support more informed public discourse and decision-making around infrastructure and policy implementation, and will inform best practices for improving WTP accuracy in environmental valuation and beyond.