Designing Economics Experiments in the Wild

Catalog description

Experiments are a critical component of the scientific process and our ability to learn about and improve the world. Why are experiments such a powerful tool both inside and outside of academia? Why do organizations—from startups to established tech giants to national governments—rely so heavily on experimentation to innovate, optimize, and make strategic decisions? This course is designed to equip you with the theoretical understanding and the practical tools needed to design, implement, and interpret experiments of your own. We'll develop these skills by showcasing real-world experiments tackling pressing questions, such as company pricing, recommendation algorithms, online advertising, employee recruitment and motivation, vaccine uptake, and discrimination by both employers and customers. By the end of the course, you should be able to design and run your own experiment, analyze data from them, and make evidence-based recommendations based on the causal evidence you have collected. You should also have a better understanding of the role of experiments in the scientific process and as a tool for decision-making even outside of academia. This is a valuable skill set for anyone looking to make practical, data-driven contributions within organizations, whether in the business, government, or non-profit sector. Prerequisites: ( 73-102 or 73-104 ) and (36-207 or 36-200 )