Experiments

Field experiments have become increasingly important ways of studying the effectiveness of political interventions, be they campaign tactics for mobilizing or persuading voters, fundraising tactics for political or charitable efforts, lobbying, recruiting volunteers, or influencing administrative or judicial outcomes through direct communication.  In this course, we will discuss the logic of experimentation, its strengths and weaknesses compared to other methodologies, and the ways in which experimentation has been -- and could be -- used to investigate political phenomena. We will discuss a wide array of applications.  Students will learn how to interpret and design experiments. In order to better understand the nuances of experimental design and analysis, we will roll up our sleeves and reanalyze some of the data from the weekly readings.