Field Experiments

by

Donald P. Green, Alexander Coppock

• LAST REVIEWED: 26 August 2013
• LAST MODIFIED: 26 August 2013
• DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199756223-0092

Introduction

Field experimentation is a method of inquiry that allows social science researchers to accomplish at least two tasks that are impossible through speculation or observation alone. The first is to establish causality. Causal claims abound in the social sciences, and experiments provide a means to test them convincingly. The second task is estimating the sign and magnitude of treatment effects in real-world settings. The precision produced by experiments allows for a realistic calculation of the costs and benefits of policies and programs. This annotated bibliography aims to lay out the methodological benefits of field experimentation, as well as some important limitations and how best to deal with them. The references cited in these sections, which include noteworthy applications and technical discussions, should give the interested reader a broad introduction to field experimentation. The references also provide a snapshot of how field experimentation is used in political science and policy research.

Data Sources

Yale University’s Institution for Social and Policy Studies Data Archive, the Dataverse Network Project, and the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) provide access to publicly available datasets from randomized experiments. The Poverty Action Lab, Field Experiment Bibliography, and the Randomized Social Experiments eJournal collect published experimental results.

• Greenberg, David H., and Mark D. Shroder, eds. Randomized Social Experiments eJournal.

  A digest of recent published and unpublished manuscripts reporting field experimental results or methodological commentary.

• Field Experiments Bibliography.

  John List’s directory of field experiments, with a focus on economics.

• Institution for Social and Policy Studies Data Archive. Yale University.

  This archive features replication data from dozens of field experiments conducted by Yale researchers, dating back to 2000.

• Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR).

  The largest social science data archive in the world contains replication data from several prominent field experiments in domains such as criminology, education, and public health.

• The Dataverse Network Project.

  This vast archive contains a wide array of studies, including an increasing number of field experiments.

• Poverty Action Lab.

  Provides extensive information on the practical issues concerning randomized evaluations.