A Discrete Choice Experiment Application to School Choice in the Basque Country

  1. Ainhoa Vega-Bayo 1
  2. Petr Mariel 1
  1. 1 Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea
    info

    Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

    Lejona, España

    ROR https://ror.org/000xsnr85

Journal:
Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics

ISSN: 0210-1173

Year of publication: 2019

Issue: 230

Pages: 41-62

Type: Article

DOI: 10.7866/HPE-RPE.19.3.2 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to analyse which school characteristics parents prefer in the Basque Country when choosing a primary school for their children, by carrying out a Discrete Choice Experiment applied to parental school choice. After conducting the experiment and gathering the answers, responses have been analysed using a Random Parameter Logit. Results indicate that, in stark contrast to other countries and regions, the most relevant school characteristics are the main language of instruction and religious orientation of the school. The main contribution of this work is the quantification, in monetary units, of the parental preferences regarding school characteristics in the Basque Country; as well as the first application of this methodology to School Choice in Spain.

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Funding information

The authors acknowledge financial support from Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through grants ECO2017-82111-R and ECO2015-64467-R (MINECO/ FEDER, UE) and the Basque Government through grants IT-359-19 (UPV/EHU Econometrics Research Group) and BiRE IT783-13. This paper was partially written when the second author was visiting the Durham University Business School. He gratefully acknowledges the support provided by the Basque Government (Ikermugikortasuna 2016) for this stay. We would also like to thank all the school managers and administrators who helped with the collection of parents’ responses. Special thanks to Artxandako Trueba Ikastetxea, Azkorri Ikastetxea, Basauri Ikastetxea Irakaskuntza Kooperatiba Elkartea, Begoñako Andra Mari Ikastetxea and El Regato Ikastetxea.

Funders

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