Testing convergent validity in choice experiments: Application to public recreation in Spanish stone pine and cork oak forests

We perform two convergent validity tests in a choice experiment applied to public recreation in Spanish stone pine and cork oak forests. Results show convergent validity between a choice and a ranking recoded as a choice format in an experiment with three alternatives plus status quo. We also find significant differences between two payment vehicles (increased trip expenditures and entrance fee) that are included simultaneously in the choice sets. We estimate aggregated recreation values using compensating variation and simulated exchange value (maximum benefits from a potential market) measures. The latter measures account for 35-51% of the former values.