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Semester 2

Designing and Implementing Experiments in Political Science (PLIT10169)

Subject

Politics

College

CAHSS

Credits

20

Normal Year Taken

3

Delivery Session Year

2023/2024

Pre-requisites

Visiting students must have completed 4 Politics courses at grade B or above, including a course equivalent to Doing Social Research with Statistics (SSPS08007) or Introduction to Political Data Analysis (PLIT08009). We will only consider University/College level courses, and we cannot consider interdisciplinary courses or courses without sufficient Politics/Government/International Relations focus. **Please see Additional Restrictions below**

Course Summary

This course introduce students to experimental methods and causality in political science research. Experimental methods are the gold standard for establishing causality and are increasingly a favoured and innovative method being used in political science and by policy makers. Using these methods, we can answer the endless causal questions in policy and politics, such as: do voters hold biases against minority candidates; which campaign methods are most effective for increasing voter turnout; which types of policy intervention is likely to reduce carbon emissions? In this course students will learn how experimental research can be used to establish causality, test theories, and inform policy decisions. They will develop skills in data collection, measurement, and analysis, as well as the ability to communicate experimental research findings effectively and critique research. By the end of the course, students will be able to design and implement political experiments and analyse and interpret experimental results.

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce students to experimental methods and causality in political science research. The course will cover the principles of experimental design, including randomization, control, and manipulation of variables, and will examine the strengths and limitations of experimental methods for establishing causality in political science research. Students will learn how to design and implement experiments to test hypotheses in political science research, and will develop skills in data collection, measurement, and analysis for experimental research. Throughout the course, students will critically evaluate experimental research in political science and assess its contribution to the field. The course will explore a range of topics and research questions that can be addressed using experimental methods. These topics may include the causal effects of policies, political behavior, institutional design, international relations, and group dynamics. **The course will cover the theory of causality and experimental methods, the practical design and analysis of experiments in political science and critical engagement with current experimental research. Students will be introduced to the theory of causality and experimental methods in the first weeks, followed by weeks on the specifics of different experimental designs. **Likely topics include: - The logic of experimental design; - Experimental Design and Sampling; - Designing experiments to test hypotheses; - Statistical Analysis of Experimental Data; - Survey experiments; - Quasi-natural experiments; - List experiments ; - Field experiments. **The course will be taught through a mixture of lecturer led content and seminar discussion as well as additional time for group work. Students will be assessed via a group research project, where they will design and implement their own political experiment. Overall, the course is designed to provide students with a hands-on, practical understanding of experimental methods and causality in political science research. Students will leave the course with a strong foundation in the principles of experimental design and the skills to apply experimental methods to their own research projects in the future.

Assessment Information

Written Exam 0%, Coursework 85%, Practical Exam 15%

Additional Restrictions

Unless you are nominated on a Politics exchange agreement, visiting students are only permitted to enrol in one Politics course each, per semester, before the start of the relevant semester’s welcome period – and spaces on each course are limited so cannot be guaranteed for any student. Enrolment in a second Politics course will depend on whether there are still spaces available in the January Welcome Period, and cannot be guaranteed. It is NOT appropriate for students to contact staff within this subject area to ask for an exception to be made; all enquiries to enrol in these courses must be made through the CAHSS Visiting Student Office. This is due to the limited number of spaces available in this very popular subject area.

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