Random control experiments are beneficial to reduce poverty but not "golden laws"
December 27, 2019 07:31 Source: "China Social Sciences", December 27, 2019, No. 1846 Author: Reporter Wang Youran

2019,Professor ABhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo、Michael Kremer, a professor at the Department of Economics at Harvard University in the United States, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for "experimental methods to reduce global poverty"。This "experimental method" refers to random control experiments, RCT)。But,The questioning and criticism of the academic community has always existed。So,What is the basic concept of RCT? How is RCT popular?。

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Random control experiments are a method designed to detect the effectiveness of a certain intervention measure,Commonly used for pharmaceutical research。In recent years,The application of this method in social science research is also increasing。The core idea of ​​RCT is to randomly divide the subject into two or more groups,A intervention of the experimental team,Give a placebo or give any intervention to the control group,Then compare the reaction of the experimental group and the control group。

According to the professor of Maitreesh Ghatak, a professor at the Department of Economics at the School of Economics of the School of Economics and Economics of London and the University of Johannesburg University of Economics, SEán MFUNDZA Muller, Introduction,In the first half of the 20th century,American Social Science Researchers bet365 Play online games began to adopt experimental methods such as RCT,Examine education、Housing、The effect of social policies in the labor market and other aspects; at the end of the 1980s,Kremo during the visit to Kenya,The idea of ​​applying RCT to development research,and in the following 20 years with Banabjib、Davlo and others proved that RCT is a powerful research tool in developing economics and related fields。Current,RCT in economics research is mostly used to evaluate the impact of low -income national social policies。

From the perspective of Sanjay G. Reddy, an associate professor of economics in the United States,RCT is increasingly "reused" in the economics world,Internal and external reasons。From the inside,Economists when assessing development projects,Always trapped in a question,That is, people who have improved the situation are usually people who have stronger motivation or some favorable conditions to make full use of these projects,Therefore, it is difficult to determine whether it is motivation or favorable conditions to play a role,The intervention measure itself is valid。The starting condition of the RCT subject is similar to,This is convenient to determine whether different experiments originated from accepting or unacceptable intervention。From the outside,The 1980s and 1990s,Many countries in the world have experienced structural policy adjustments,Following the fiscal tightening and market -oriented reform,Lost confidence in many people's ability to change Bet365 app download the destiny of public policy。People have also begun to question the effectiveness of international assistance under the stagnation of economic growth。In this background,The interest of people explored the effectiveness of the development policy began to improve。Some scholars think,With the full support of the government and various public and private sectors,Successful small -scale intervention measures can be expanded。

Under the common promotion of the internal and external forces,RCT "popular" global。Some aid agencies and government departments prefer to support effective intervention measures by RCT,It even believes that only the funding of high -influence intervention with high influence is wise。Developed countries have also begun to use RCT methods on a large scale。For example,A RCT display in New York City, USA,In the city's serious poor community,Small public high school replace large public high schools with poor academic performance,Under the circumstance where the operating cost is basically unchanged,Increase the graduation rate of high school by 4%-10%。

 Rct is not perfect

Although RCT is widely welcome by policy makers and development assistance agencies,It is also considered by the media to bring revolutionary progress to the cause of poverty reduction,But the economics community is not unanimously admired by RCT,Many scholars point out from different angles,RCT far from "Gold Standard"。

Redi、Mueller and Assistant Professor of the University of Rytman's School of Management, the University of Toronto, Kevin Bryan, bet365 Play online games all said,External validity of RCT is not higher than other research methods,The same intervention measures are under different systems and social environments,It may not produce the same effect。For example,Countries with high credibility of the government,Public health information has the impact of public health on public health.,The role of the same labor market policy is likely to be different。One problem related to this is the scale and overflow effect。Rct is usually carried out by scientific researchers and non -governmental organizations that cooperate with them,After the government expands its implementation,The situation may become complicated。Large -scale policy will attract politicians and voters' attention,It is possible to make the incentive factors、Supply of public goods、Political accountability and other conditions have changed; pilot projects that have been good for non -governmental organizations are promoted as a large -scale policy,May be restricted by the complicated administrative management process of the public sector。

Internal validity of RCT is also a aspect of questioning。Professor James J. Heckman at the University of Economics at the University of Chicago,Setting intervention itself may affect the results,Different reactions of the subjects and related personnel due to the emergence of intervention measures。Another,RCT measures the average effect of a certain intervention measure among all the subjects,Usually unable to reflect the difference between the internal effects of the bet365 best casino games subject。But,During the policy formulation process,Understanding the response of different people to intervention measures is usually necessary。and,Even in the same environment,A person's learning behavior may also cause the effect of intervention measures to change over time。

Some scholars are also worried about ethical issues involved in RCT,Especially whether RCT can follow the principle of informed consent in actual operation。The principle of informed consent is very important in RCT, which involves the distribution of key resources to disadvantaged groups,Randomly provide or does not provide some resource,It may cause accidental damage to the fragile crowd,Even causes social instability。

  Pay attention to the diversification of research methods

Gatak said,The academic community cannot ignore reasonable questioning and criticism of RCT,But the "RCT Movement" should be recognized to create a consensus -in the process of policy formulation,Must emphasize the importance of evidence。It prompts people to understand what they know、I don't know what,Let people quantify and compare the cost and income of optional solutions; countries that are highly centralized in policy formulation and implementation,This is particularly important。

Ahmed Mushfiq Mobarak, a professor at the Department of Economics of Yale University in the United States, and C. Austin Davis, assistant professor of the University of International Services at the International Service of the United States University, arrive,Considering the fixed cost of RCT is high,Economists can use the data collected by RCT bet365 live casino games and other theoretical models、Statistical model combines,Reliability of improving its policy reference; you can also use multiple locations to experiment,to improve the integrity of research efficiency and evidence、Coherent,and observe how similar intervention measures will change in different environments or different cycles。The rise of "RCT Movement" marks an important step in the field of development economics in the correct direction,But economists have the responsibility based on the research results of the 2019 Nobel Prize winner,For more innovation,to improve the rigor of RCT,Solve the problem of RCT existence。

Kunal Sen, a professor at the University of Manchester at the University of Manchester, said,Banabig、Diflo、Cramer's research has made a significant contribution to the development of economics。This field once highly relied on second -hand data,"RCT Movement" makes one -hand data collection a key component of development economics research。but but,Rct is just one of many research methods,It may not apply to all problems。One of the danger that the economics community is increasingly prominent is,Research problems are dominated by research methods。The application of RCT in developing economics is affirmed by the Nobel Prize,This is indeed happy and congratulatory,But at the same time, the economics community should continue to support the diversification of research methods。

Editor in charge: Changchang
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