Professor Verity Watson

Honorary Chair

School/Department: School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition

Biography

Professor Watson is an internationally recognised economist with over 25 years of experience in stated preference research, including discrete choice experiments and contingent valuation, focusing on the design and validity of preference elicitation methods. Her work spans health economics, environmental economics, and public policy applications, bridging methodological innovation with real-world implementation.

Professor Watson's research addresses fundamental questions about how stated preference methods perform in practice, grounded in the essential question: "does this method actually measure what we think it measures?" Her research examines the cognitive processes underlying preference elicitation, investigates factors that influence response quality, and develops approaches to improve the reliability of preference data. This work has established best practices in preference studies and guided researchers in understanding when and how these methods can be reliably applied across different contexts and populations.

Professor Watson has over 75 widely cited peer-reviewed publications in leading journals including Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Health Economics, Social Science and Medicine, and Lancet: Public Health.

Professor Watson developed and co-leads the internationally recognised annual course "Using Discrete Choice Experiments in Health Economics," training researchers and industry professionals from academic institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and consulting firms globally.

Professor Watson was Personal Chair in the Health Economics Research Unit, leading the Preference and Value research theme until April 2024. She continues as Honorary Professor in the Health Economics Research Unit, a position held since 2024

CV.pdf

Qualifications

PhD Economics
2003 - University of Aberdeen
MSc Economics
1998 - Glasgow University
MA(Hons) Economic Science
1997 - University of Aberdeen

Latest Publications

‘Come and work here!’: A qualitative exploration of local community-led initiatives to recruit and retain health care staff in remote and rural areas of the UK
2025 - Published
Maclaren, A., Locock, L., Skea, Z., Angell, L., Cleland, J., Dawson, T., Denison, A., Dobson, C., Hollick, R., Murchie, P., Skåtun, D., Watson, V.
Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 180-188
Contributions to Journals: Articles
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/13558196251318607
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/25641/1/Maclaren_etal_JHSRP_Come_And_Work_VoR.pdf
Validating and Updating the OHTS-EGPS Model Predicting 5-year Glaucoma Risk among Ocular Hypertension Patients Using Electronic Records
2025 - Published
Wright, D. M., Azuara-Blanco, A., Cardwell, C., Montesano, G., Crabb, D. P., Gazzard, G., King, A. J., Hernández, R., Morgan, J. E., Higgins, B., Takwoingi, Y., GRIP Study Group, Booth, A., Rowlands, A., McNaught, A., Scott, A., King, A., Azuara-Blanco, A., Cardwell, C., Dimitriou, C., Wright, D. M., Crabb, D. P., Ahmed, F., Montesano, G., Gazzard, G., Wu, H., Morgan, J. E., Weir, L., French, L., Nagar, M., Rafiq, O., Sebastian, R., Watson, V., Takwoingi, Y.
Ophthalmology Glaucoma, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 143-151
Contributions to Journals: Articles
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ogla.2024.10.009
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/25447/1/Wright_etal_OG_Validating_And_Updating_VoR.pdf
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
ICANEQUAL multi-stakeholder partnership: Reducing inequalities in liver cancer (HCC) diagnosis, treatment and care across the UK
2025 - E-pub ahead of print
Tripathee, S., Treweek, S., Van Hemelrijck, M., Ross, P., Watson, V., MacLennan, G., Guntupalli, A. M., Adams, J., Majmudar, B., Murchie, P., Bekheit, M., MacLennan, S. J.
NIHR Open Research, vol. 5, no. 5
Contributions to Journals: Articles
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.3310/nihropenres.13723.1
Valuing the health and wellbeing value of the NHS Scotland’s outdoor estate: How are NHS open spaces used and what is their value to the Scottish population
2025 - Published
Loria-Rebolledo, L. E., Boyers, D., Watson, V., Antunes, M., Chalmers, N.
Scottish Environment, Food and Agriculture Research Institutes (SEFARI). 76 pages
Books and Reports: Other Reports
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.57064/2164/25103
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/25552/1/Loria-Rebolledo_etal_Report_Valuing_health_wellbeing_VOR.pdf
- [ONLINE] Access report on SEFARI webpage
Preferences of Recent Mums in Remote and Rural Areas for Type of Intrapartum Care: A Discrete Choice Experiment
2024 - Published
Loria Rebolledo, L., Van Woerden, H., Bryers, H., Erdem, S., Watson, V.
The Patient - Patient-Centered Outcomes Research, vol. 17, pp. 663–672
Contributions to Journals: Articles
- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40271-024-00704-8
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/24453/1/Loria_etal_TPPCOR_Preferences_Of_Recent_AAM.pdf

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Latest Publications

‘Come and work here!’: A qualitative exploration of local community-led initiatives to recruit and retain health care staff in remote and rural areas of the UK

Validating and Updating the OHTS-EGPS Model Predicting 5-year Glaucoma Risk among Ocular Hypertension Patients Using Electronic Records

ICANEQUAL multi-stakeholder partnership: Reducing inequalities in liver cancer (HCC) diagnosis, treatment and care across the UK

Valuing the health and wellbeing value of the NHS Scotland’s outdoor estate: How are NHS open spaces used and what is their value to the Scottish population

Preferences of Recent Mums in Remote and Rural Areas for Type of Intrapartum Care: A Discrete Choice Experiment

Job satisfaction and quit intentions of offshore workers in the UK North Sea oil and and gas industry

Is it all about money?: An examination of the motives behind moonlighting

Comparing welfare estimates from payment card contingent valuation and discrete choice experiments

Rationalising the 'irrational': a think aloud study of discrete choice experiment responses

Choosing Not to Choose: Considering Serial Non-Participation in Discrete Choice Experiments

Exploring preference anomalies in double bounded contingent valuation

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