Questions of Scale in Economic Experiments

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_86730EA044B0
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Questions of Scale in Economic Experiments
Journal
Revue de Philosophie Économique = Review of Economic Philosophy
Author(s)
Maas H.
ISSN
1376-0971
ISSN-L
2118-4852
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2012
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
13
Number
1
Pages
103-125
Language
english
Notes
Titre thématique du numéro:Experimental economics: some methodological aspects
Abstract
Questions of scale have received ample attention in physical scale modeling and experimentation, but have not been discussed with regard to economic experimentation. In this article I distinguish between two kinds of experiments, "generic" and "specific" experiments. Using a comparison between two experimental laboratory studies on the "posted price effect", I then show that scale issues become important in specific laboratory experiments because of the scaling down of time in the target market to laboratory dimensions. This entails choices in the material configuration of the experiment as well as role changes of experimental subjects. My discussion thus adds to recent literature on external validity and on the materiality of experiments.
Keywords
economic laboratory, experiments, physical scale models, posted price effect, dry barge market, pricing institutions
Create date
17/01/2016 20:43
Last modification date
20/08/2019 15:45
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