Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics
Null Hypothesis Significance Testing has been widely used in the experimental economics literature. Typically, attention is restricted to type-I-errors. We demonstrate that not taking type-II errors into account is problematic. We also provide evidence, for one prominent area in experimental economi...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
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University of New South Wales
2013
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/62344 |
| _version_ | 1848760833828454400 |
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| author | Zhang, Lyla Ortmann, A. |
| author_facet | Zhang, Lyla Ortmann, A. |
| author_sort | Zhang, Lyla |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Null Hypothesis Significance Testing has been widely used in the experimental economics literature. Typically, attention is restricted to type-I-errors. We demonstrate that not taking type-II errors into account is problematic. We also provide evidence, for one prominent area in experimental economics (dictator game experiments), that most studies are severely underpowered, suggesting that their findings are questionable. We then illustrate with several examples how poor (no) power planning can lead to questionable results. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T10:22:04Z |
| format | Working Paper |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-62344 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T10:22:04Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| publisher | University of New South Wales |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-623442018-02-01T05:23:17Z Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics Zhang, Lyla Ortmann, A. Type-I-errors Type-II errors Significance level Null Hypothesis Significance Testing Statistical power Null Hypothesis Significance Testing has been widely used in the experimental economics literature. Typically, attention is restricted to type-I-errors. We demonstrate that not taking type-II errors into account is problematic. We also provide evidence, for one prominent area in experimental economics (dictator game experiments), that most studies are severely underpowered, suggesting that their findings are questionable. We then illustrate with several examples how poor (no) power planning can lead to questionable results. 2013 Working Paper http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/62344 University of New South Wales restricted |
| spellingShingle | Type-I-errors Type-II errors Significance level Null Hypothesis Significance Testing Statistical power Zhang, Lyla Ortmann, A. Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title | Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title_full | Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title_fullStr | Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title_short | Exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| title_sort | exploring the meaning of significance in experimental economics |
| topic | Type-I-errors Type-II errors Significance level Null Hypothesis Significance Testing Statistical power |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/62344 |