Category Archives: Chapter 6
Rigorous Evidence Should Inform Spending
Ron Haskins began the new year on a positive note. The co-director of the Center on Children and Families at the Brookings Institution, Haskins reports that “a growing body of evidence shows that a few model social programs” work, and … Continue reading
Who We Are and Who We Are Becoming
As a long-term resident of the Boston area and a college professor, it’s heartening to learn that Bostonians spend more on college than residents of others cities. As I write yet another blog entry based on a newspaper article, it’s … Continue reading
Health Care Myths and Randomized Trials
Once people have health insurance, they are going to be less likely to go to the emergency room for acute health problems and will instead see doctors in their offices and use more preventive care services. Right? Well, it seems … Continue reading
Crossing the Political Line?
In the Big Data world, a small experiment can have a big impact. Stanford University political scientists Adam Bonica and Jonathan Rodden, and Dartmouth’s Kyle Dropp designed a Big Data experiment to test whether information on the ideological preferences of … Continue reading
Race in Mexico
Slavery was abolished in Mexico in 1829, long before abolition in the United States during the Civil War. Since then, race has often been overlooked as a basis of social differentiation in Mexico and it has not been measured with … Continue reading
Researching in a Social World 