Mechanism Experiments and Policy Evaluations

Jens Ludwig, Jeffrey Kling and Sendhil Mullainathan

No 17062, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Randomized controlled trials are increasingly used to evaluate policies. How can we make these experiments as useful as possible for policy purposes? We argue greater use should be made of experiments that identify behavioral mechanisms that are central to clearly specified policy questions, what we call "mechanism experiments." These types of experiments can be of great policy value even if the intervention that is tested (or its setting) does not correspond exactly to any realistic policy option.

JEL-codes: C93 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cba and nep-exp
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (86)

Published as Jens Ludwig & Jeffrey R. Kling & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2011. "Mechanism Experiments and Policy Evaluations," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 25(3), pages 17-38, Summer.

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Journal Article: Mechanism Experiments and Policy Evaluations (2011)
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