Field Experiments in Labor Economics

John List and Imran Rasul

Chapter 02 in Handbook of Labor Economics, 2011, vol. 4A, pp 103-228 from Elsevier

Abstract: We overview the use of field experiments in labor economics. We showcase studies that highlight the central advantages of this methodology, which include: (i) using economic theory to design the null and alternative hypotheses; (ii) engineering exogenous variation in real world economic environments to establish causal relations and learn about the underlying mechanisms; and (iii) engaging in primary data collection and often working closely with practitioners. To highlight the potential for field experiments to inform issues in labor economics, we organize our discussion around the individual life cycle. We therefore consider field experiments related to the accumulation of human capital, the demand and supply of labor, and behavior within firms, and close with a brief discussion of the nascent literature of field experiments related to household decision making.

Keywords: Field experiments; Labor economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-444-53450-7
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (144)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B7P5V ... f39e2b81c263bb3db182
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
Working Paper: Field experiments in labor economics (2010)
Working Paper: Field Experiments in Labor Economics (2010)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:labchp:4-02

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Handbook of Labor Economics from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().