Social ExperimentationJerry A. Hausman, David A. Wise University of Chicago Press, 2007 M12 1 - 300 pages Since 1970 the United States government has spent over half a billion dollars on social experiments intended to assess the effect of potential tax policies, health insurance plans, housing subsidies, and other programs. Was it worth it? Was anything learned from these experiments that could not have been learned by other, and cheaper, means? Could the experiments have been better designed or analyzed? These are some of the questions addressed by the contributors to this volume, the result of a conference on social experimentation sponsored in 1981 by the National Bureau of Economic Research. The first section of the book looks at four types of experiments and what each accomplished. Frank P. Stafford examines the negative income tax experiments, Dennis J. Aigner considers the experiments with electricity pricing based on time of use, Harvey S. Rosen evaluates housing allowance experiments, and Jeffrey E. Harris reports on health experiments. In the second section, addressing experimental design and analysis, Jerry A. Hausman and David A. Wise highlight the absence of random selection of participants in social experiments, Frederick Mosteller and Milton C. Weinstein look specifically at the design of medical experiments, and Ernst W. Stromsdorfer examines the effects of experiments on policy. Each chapter is followed by the commentary of one or more distinguished economists. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 66
Page iv
... Evaluation research ( Social action programs ) —— Congresses . 2. Negative income tax - United States- Evaluation Congresses . 3. Electric utilities — United States Rates - Time - of - use pricing - Evaluation— Congresses . 4. Housing ...
... Evaluation research ( Social action programs ) —— Congresses . 2. Negative income tax - United States- Evaluation Congresses . 3. Electric utilities — United States Rates - Time - of - use pricing - Evaluation— Congresses . 4. Housing ...
Page viii
... Evaluating the Cost - Effectiveness of Medical and Social Experiments 221 Frederick Mosteller and Milton C. Weinstein Comment : Joseph B. Kadane 7 . The Use of Information in the Policy Process : Are Social - Policy Experiments ...
... Evaluating the Cost - Effectiveness of Medical and Social Experiments 221 Frederick Mosteller and Milton C. Weinstein Comment : Joseph B. Kadane 7 . The Use of Information in the Policy Process : Are Social - Policy Experiments ...
Page 1
... evaluation goal . In addition to the question of the success of the experiments for policy evaluation , whether the experiments were worth the cost was a recurring question among the conference participants . That is , could similar in ...
... evaluation goal . In addition to the question of the success of the experiments for policy evaluation , whether the experiments were worth the cost was a recurring question among the conference participants . That is , could similar in ...
Page 2
... evaluation papers also consider what other purposes the results of the experiments are used for because experimental results may be superior to econometric estimates for these other uses . But since , to a large extent , the policy ...
... evaluation papers also consider what other purposes the results of the experiments are used for because experimental results may be superior to econometric estimates for these other uses . But since , to a large extent , the policy ...
Page 4
... evaluate the TOU rates will be acceptable to state regulatory commissions . He also emphasizes that the short - run ... evaluation of the desirability of TOU rate plans . Thus , all three authors feel that we have not " learned enough ...
... evaluate the TOU rates will be acceptable to state regulatory commissions . He also emphasizes that the short - run ... evaluation of the desirability of TOU rate plans . Thus , all three authors feel that we have not " learned enough ...
Contents
1 | |
11 | |
2 Housing Behavior and the Experimental HousingAllowance Program What Have We Learned? | 55 |
3 IncomeMaintenance Policy and Work Effort Learning from Experiments and LaborMarket Studies | 95 |
4 Macroexperiments versus Microexperiments for Health Policy | 145 |
5 Technical Problems in Social Experimentation Cost versus Ease of Analysis | 187 |
6 Toward Evaluating the CostEffectiveness of Medical and Social Experiments | 221 |
7 The Use of Information in the Policy Process Are SocialPolicy Experiments Worthwhile? | 251 |
8 Social Science Analysis and the Formulation of Public Policy Illustrations of What the President Knows and How He Comes to Know It | 257 |
List of Contributors | 283 |
Author Index | 285 |
Subject Index | 288 |
Common terms and phrases
Aigner analysis ANOVA assess assumptions attrition behavior benefits Broad Peak budget changes cholesterol clinical trials control group cost-effectiveness costs decision demand experiment discussion econometric economic efficacy EHAP elasticity estimates electricity eligible endogenous equation evaluation example exogenous experimental data experimental design experimental effect function Hausman and Wise Hawthorne effects hedonic households housing allowances housing services hypertension impact important incentive income maintenance increase individual Institute intervention issues Journal labor supply labor-market likelihood function macroexperimentation macroexperiments measure ment Mosteller MRFIT negative income tax nonexperimental observations off-peak outcomes paper parameters payments peak percent perimental period policy makers population potential pre-experimental predict price elasticity problems procedure projects question random residential response Rosen selection selectivity bias social experiments specific statistical Stromsdorfer studies subjects supply experiment time-of-day tion TOU pricing TOU rates treatment assignment treatment effect treatment groups U.S. Congress unemployment utility variables variation wage welfare
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