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It is often suggested in policy debates that the employment of highly educated workers in jobs traditionally held by lower skilled workers leads to skill wastage and a worsening labour market position for the less educated. This process is generally referred to as 'bumping down' or 'crowding out'. The contributions in this book provide insights into the role of education in society by investigating the extent to which these arguments of overeducation are valid. A range of approaches are brought together to create a complete picture of the debate in economics about under-utilisation of skills and bumping down. The introductory chapter by the editors (p. 3-23) is entitled 'The debate in economics about skill utilization'. Part one, 'Underutilization or upgrading?', contains the following chapters: Technology and the demand for skills / Edward Wolff (p. 27-56); Has the Finnish labour market bumped the least educated? / Rita Asplund and Reija Lilja (p. 57-76); Are British workers becoming more skilled? / Francis Green, David Ashton, Brendan Burchell, Bryn Davies and Alan Felstead (p. 77-106). Part two, 'Causes of underutilization', contains the following chapters: Overeducation and crowding out of low-skilled workers / Joan Muysken and Bas ter Weel (p. 109-132); Overqualification makes low-wage employment attractive / Thomas Zwick (p. 133-156); Overeducation and crowding out in Britain / Harminder Battu and Peter Sloane (p. 157-174); The effect of bumping down on wages: an empirical test / Ides Nicaise (p. 175-187). Part three, 'Consequences of underutilization of skills', contains the following chapters: Low wages, skills and the utilization of skills / Lex Borghans, Allard Bruinshoofd and Andries de Grip (p. 191-202); Do more high-skilled workers occupy simple jobs during bad times? / Pieter Gautier (p. 203-230); Job competition in the Dutch labour market / Loek Groot and Albert Hoek (p. 231-252).