Putting Politics in the Lab: A Review of Lab Experiments in Political Science

TY - JOUR

T1 - Putting Politics in the Lab

T2 - A Review of Lab Experiments in Political Science

AU - Bol, Damien

PY - 2019/1/1

Y1 - 2019/1/1

N2 - Experiments are now common in political science. They are an excellent methodological tool to estimate the causal effect of a treatment on an outcome. In this article, I review the use of lab experiments in political science. After a brief report on their popularity and advantages, I distinguish two ideal-types (economics-based and psychology-based) and outline the main lines of division between them. In the final section, I discuss the main challenges that lab experimentalists are facing today.

AB - Experiments are now common in political science. They are an excellent methodological tool to estimate the causal effect of a treatment on an outcome. In this article, I review the use of lab experiments in political science. After a brief report on their popularity and advantages, I distinguish two ideal-types (economics-based and psychology-based) and outline the main lines of division between them. In the final section, I discuss the main challenges that lab experimentalists are facing today.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85049867004&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1017/gov.2018.14

DO - 10.1017/gov.2018.14

M3 - Review article

SN - 0017-257X

VL - 54

SP - 167

EP - 190

JO - GOVERNMENT AND OPPOSITION

JF - GOVERNMENT AND OPPOSITION

IS - 1

ER -