Week5 - Introduction to Experimentation

Cards (5)

  • what is behavioural economics the study of
    the study of the cognitive and emotional forces that affect human economic behaviour
  • what is the tool of laboratory experiments and what is the tool good for
    creates a fully controlled environment of economic decision making. there is a tradeoff between the level of control and the level of virtualisation. there is the option of manipulating the environment to study specific aspects

    i. testing theories
    ii. testing general claims about rationality
    iii. testing competing mechanisms or incentive schemes
  • what is the methodology of experimental economics
    i. careful design of the environment that allows you to answer a specific question
    ii. using real payoffs as a tool for creating a real economic environment
    iii. use confidentiality among subjects to avoid uncontrolled effects
    iv. avoid deception
    v. be aware to sample size
    vi. honesty
  • what is the natural link between behavioural and experimental economics
    experimental economics focuses on the discrepancies between theoretical results and empirical evidence form the lab
  • name and explain the other related methods to behavioural economics
    i. field experiments
    ii. neuroeconomics
    iii. BioEcon - effects of substances on economic decisions
    iv. GenoEconomics - attributing genetic differences to different patterns of decision making