The E-word – On the public acceptance of experiments

Mira Fischer, Elisabeth Grewenig, Philipp Lergetporer, Katharina Werner and Helen Zeidler

Economics Letters, 2024, vol. 235, issue C

Abstract: Randomized experiments are often viewed as the “gold standard” of scientific evidence, but people's skepticism towards experiments has compromised their viability in the past. We study preferences for experimental policy evaluations in a representative survey in Germany (N > 1,900). We find that a majority of 75 % supports the idea of small-scale evaluations of policies before enacting them at a large scale. Experimentally varying whether the evaluations are explicitly described as “experiments” has a precisely estimated overall zero effect on public support. Our results indicate political leeway for experimental policy evaluation, a practice that is still uncommon in Germany.

Keywords: Experiment aversion; Policy experimentation; Education (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C93 H40 I28 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Working Paper: The E-Word – On the Public Acceptance of Experiments* (2023)
Working Paper: The E-Word - On the Public Acceptance of Experiments (2023)
Working Paper: The E-Word – On the Public Acceptance of Experiments (2023)
Working Paper: The E-Word – On the Public Acceptance of Experiments (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:235:y:2024:i:c:s0165176524000429

DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2024.111558

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