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IR14-011_Nieto.pdf (674.43 KB)

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Working paper

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2014

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cc-by-nc-nd, (c) Nieto et al., 2014
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/57168

Overeducation, skills and wage penalty: Evidence for Spain using PIAAC data

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Abstract

The literature on educational mismatches finds that overeducated workers suffer a wage penalty compared with properly educated workers with the same level of education. Recent literature also suggests that individuals’ skill heterogeneity could explain wage differences between overeducated and properly matched workers. The hypothesis is that overeducated workers earn less due to their lower competences and skills in relative terms. However, that hypothesis has been rarely tested due to data limitations on individuals’ skills. The aim of this paper is to test the individuals’ skill heterogeneity theory in Spain using microdata from PIAAC, because it is one of the developed countries supporting the highest overeducation rates and where its adult population holds the lowest level of skills among a set of developed countries. Our hypothesis is that the wage penalty of overeducation in Spain is explained by the lower skill level of overeducated workers. The obtained evidence confirms this hypothesis but only to a certain extent as skills only explain partially the wage penalty of overeducation.

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Rendiment acadèmic, Igualtat d'oportunitats educatives, Recursos humans, Mercat de treball, Psicologia de l'adolescència

Subject (English)

Academic achievement, Educational equalization, Human capital, Labor market, Academic achievement, Adolescent psychology

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Documents de treball (Institut de Recerca en Economia Aplicada Regional i Pública (IREA))
AQR (Grup d’Anàlisi Quantitativa Regional) – Working Papers
Documents de treball / Informes (Econometria, Estadística i Economia Aplicada)

Citation

NIETO VIRAMONTES, Sandra. Overeducation, skills and wage penalty: Evidence for Spain using PIAAC data. IREA – Working Papers. 2014. Vol.  IR14/11. ISSN 2014-1254. [consulted: 11 of August of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/57168

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