Undergraduate Econometrics Instruction: Through Our Classes, Darkly
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jep.31.2.125.pdf
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592.33 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
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Author(s)
Pischke, Jörn-Steffen
Angrist, Joshua
Date Issued
2017
Journal
Journal of Economic Perspectives
Publisher
American Economic Association
Citation
Angrist, Joshua D., and Pischke, Jörn-Steffen. “Undergraduate Econometrics Instruction: Through Our Classes, Darkly.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 31, 2 (May 2017): 125–144
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The past half-century has seen economic research become increasingly empirical, while the nature of empirical economic research has also changed. In the 1960s and 1970s, an empirical economist's typical mission was to "explain" economic variables like wages or GDP growth. Applied econometrics has since evolved to prioritize the estimation of specific causal effects and empirical policy analysis over general models of outcome determination. Yet econometric instruction remains mostly abstract, focusing on the search for "true models" and technical concerns associated with classical regression assumptions. Questions of research design and causality still take a back seat in the classroom, in spite of having risen to the top of the modern empirical agenda. This essay traces the divergent development of econometric teaching and empirical practice, arguing for a pedagogical paradigm shift.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Economics
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1257/JEP.31.2.125
