IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/jecmet/v6y1999i1p1-30.html

Experiments in economics: should we trust the dismal scientists in white coats?

Author

Listed:
  • Chris Starmer

Abstract

Is the rapid growth of experimental research in economics evidence of a new scientific spirit at work or merely fresh evidence of a misplaced desire to ape the methods of natural sciences? It is often argued that economic experiments are artificial in some sense that tends to render the results problematic or uninteresting. In the early part of this paper I argue that this artificiality critique does not provide a convincing philosophical objection to experimentation in economics. Later sections of the paper argue that methodological discourse in relation to experiments has become somewhat polarized: experimentalists have promoted a position that seeks to defuse objections to experiments; theorists have taken up positions that insulate theory from experimental challenge. I argue that these strategies are overly defensive and tend to stifle rather than promote the goals of economic enquiry.

Suggested Citation

  • Chris Starmer, 1999. "Experiments in economics: should we trust the dismal scientists in white coats?," Journal of Economic Methodology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 1-30.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jecmet:v:6:y:1999:i:1:p:1-30
    DOI: 10.1080/13501789900000001
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13501789900000001
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/13501789900000001?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or

    for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. John H. Kagel & Raymond C. Battalio, 1980. "Token Economy and Animal Models for the Experimental Analysis of Economic Behavior," NBER Chapters, in: Evaluation of Econometric Models, pages 379-401, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Vernon L. Smith, 1980. "Relevance of Laboratory Experiments to Testing Resource Allocation Theory," NBER Chapters, in: Evaluation of Econometric Models, pages 345-377, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Frank P. Stafford, 1980. "Some Comments on the Papers by Kagel and Battalio and by Smith," NBER Chapters, in: Evaluation of Econometric Models, pages 407-410, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. repec:wuk:eaercp:_002 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. List John A., 2007. "Field Experiments: A Bridge between Lab and Naturally Occurring Data," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 6(2), pages 1-47, April.
    3. Kimbrough, Erik O. & Smyth, Andrew, 2018. "Testing the boundaries of the double auction: The effects of complete information and market power," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 372-396.
    4. Eric Floyd & John A. List, 2016. "Using Field Experiments in Accounting and Finance," Journal of Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 54(2), pages 437-475, May.
    5. Requate, Till & Camacho-Cuena, Eva & Kean Siang, Ch'ng & Waichman, Israel, 2019. "Tell the truth or not? The montero mechanism for emissions control at work," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 133-152.
    6. Vernon Smith, 2002. "Method in Experiment: Rhetoric and Reality," Experimental Economics, Springer;Economic Science Association, vol. 5(2), pages 91-110, October.
    7. Daniel Friedman & Glen W. Harrison & Jon W. Salmon, 1982. "The Informational Role of Futures Markets and Learning Behavious: Some Experimental Evidence," UCLA Economics Working Papers 248, UCLA Department of Economics.
    8. Françoise Schoumaker, 1986. "Tour d’horizon des méthodes expérimentales en sciences économiques et leurs résultats," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 62(3), pages 474-485.
    9. Jack Knetsch & Fang-Fang Tang & Richard Thaler, 2001. "The Endowment Effect and Repeated Market Trials: Is the Vickrey Auction Demand Revealing?," Experimental Economics, Springer;Economic Science Association, vol. 4(3), pages 257-269, December.
    10. Dimitrios Koumparoulis, 2013. "Laboratory Experimentation in Economics Classification-JEL: C90, C91, C92," Journal of Knowledge Management, Economics and Information Technology, ScientificPapers.org, vol. 3(1), pages 1-1, February.
    11. Vernon L. Smith, 2020. "Causal versus Consequential Motives in Mental Models of Agent Social and Economic Action: Experiments, and the Neoclassical Diversion in Economics," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 73(3), pages 341-370, August.
    12. César Martinelli & Jianxin Wang & Weiwei Zheng, 2023. "Competition with indivisibilities and few traders," Experimental Economics, Springer;Economic Science Association, vol. 26(1), pages 78-106, March.
    13. Bruno S. Frey & Benno Torgler, 2004. "Taxation and Conditional Taxation," Working Papers 2004/7, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
    14. Andreas Ortman, 2013. "Episodes from the Early History of Experimentation in Economics," Discussion Papers 2013-34, School of Economics, The University of New South Wales.
    15. Mark Van Boening & Tanja F. Blackstone & Michael McKee & Elisabet Rutstrom, 2006. "Benefit packages and individual behavior: choices over discrete goods with multiple attributes," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(6), pages 511-526.
    16. Vernon L. Smith, 2003. "Constructivist and Ecological Rationality in Economics," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(3), pages 465-508, June.
    17. Cheryl L. Eavey, 1991. "Patterns of Distribution in Spatial Games," Rationality and Society, , vol. 3(4), pages 450-474, October.
    18. Almeida, Vinicio de Souza e & Leal, Ricardi Pereira Câmara, 2015. "A joint experimental analysis of investor behavior in IPO pricing methods," RAE - Revista de Administração de Empresas, FGV-EAESP Escola de Administração de Empresas de São Paulo (Brazil), vol. 55(1), January.
    19. Arthur M. Diamond Jr., 1988. "Bibliography of Unusual Applications of Price Theory, a Note," The American Economist, Sage Publications, vol. 32(1), pages 78-79, March.
    20. Forster, D. Lynn & Henderson, Dennis R., 1984. "Testing the Impacts of Structure and Information on Market Performance Using Experimental Economics," 1984 Annual Meeting, August 5-8, Ithaca, New York 279090, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    21. Bao, Te, 2022. "Comments on “the role of information in a continuous double auction: An experiment and learning model” by Mikhail Anufriev, Jasmina Arifovic, John Ledyard and Valentyn Panchenko," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • C90 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - General
    • C99 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Other

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:taf:jecmet:v:6:y:1999:i:1:p:1-30. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/RJEC20 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.