ECO 752 Research Methods II

The purpose of this course is to help students become comfortable and creative as empirical economic researchers. It will introduce a series of statistical techniques and models by observing life in the trenches, i.e., working through how practitioners have approached various quantitative problems and used econometric techniques to address substantive questions. In addition to regression-based approaches, we will explore other techniques such as variance decomposition and principle component analysis. Throughout the course, the focus is on real-world data, and on the kind of concrete questions that arise in policy, businesses, journalistic and similar contexts. A major focus of the class is on communicating statistical results in ways that are illuminating, persuasive, professional and rigorous. Coursework will make use of a major statistical package, which students will learn.