"This volume consists of eight chapters, selected from papers presented at the Symposium on Human Capital and Health Behavior, organized by the Centre for Health Economics, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, May 19-20, 2016"--page xi

Medical technology broadly defined to include all aspects of the process of treating disease (e.g., pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and surgical procedures) is profoundly important for individual health and, consequently, also for general welfare. Advances in medical technology convey the...

Human capital is embodied in human beings. It embraces the individual's capacity to perform and enjoy activities that provide money and/or psychic income. Health behaviour affects human capital and is itself affected by the individual's human capital. This volume consists of original theoretical...

This Volume focuses on human capital and health behavior. Content is based on an International symposium on Human Capital and Health Behavior, held by The Centre for Health Economics at the University of Gothenburg. Content will cover both theoretical and empirical aspects of the topic.

Measurements of individual benefits of different health and medical interventions are fundamental for prioritizing among different alternative uses of resources in the healthcare sector. While psychometric measures do not necessarily provide information sufficient for assigning relative values...

Obesity, which has increased in most developed countries in the past few decades, is the result of genetics, environment, and individual choices. Economics is useful for studying the individual choices that lead to obesity, explanations for the recent rise in obesity, the treatment options for...

The economics of substance use and abuse deals with the consumption of goods that share two properties. First, they are addictive in the sense that an increase in past consumption of the good leads to an increase in current consumption. Second, their consumption harms the consumer and others....