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Private education, positional goods, and the arms race problem

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  • Daniel Halliday

    (University of Melbourne, Australia)

Abstract

This article defends the view that markets in education need to be restricted, in light of the problem posed by what I call the ‘educational arms race’. Markets in education have a tendency to distort an important balance between education’s role as a gatekeeper – its ‘screening’ function – and its role in helping children develop as part of a preparation for adult life. This tendency is not merely a contingent fact about markets: It can be traced to ways in which education is a partly positional good and how markets respond to (and stimulate) demand for positional goods over non-positional goods. The problem with arms races is that they allow markets to facilitate wider use of defection in a collective action problem. Using these claims, I argue that markets in education have a distinctive tendency to become objectionably exploitative. I conclude by applying some of my conclusions to illuminate various egalitarian claims about justice in education.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel Halliday, 2016. "Private education, positional goods, and the arms race problem," Politics, Philosophy & Economics, , vol. 15(2), pages 150-169, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:pophec:v:15:y:2016:i:2:p:150-169
    DOI: 10.1177/1470594X15603717
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alpizar, Francisco & Carlsson, Fredrik & Johansson-Stenman, Olof, 2005. "How much do we care about absolute versus relative income and consumption?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 56(3), pages 405-421, March.
    2. Sara J. Solnick & David Hemenway, 2005. "Are Positional Concerns Stronger in Some Domains than in Others?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(2), pages 147-151, May.
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