Experimental Methods for Behavioral Science

The objective of this course is to provide students with an understanding of the essential principles and techniques for conducting scientific experiments on human behavior. It is tailored for individuals with an interest in doing research (using experimental methods) in areas such as psychology, judgment and decision making, behavioral economics, consumer behavior, organizational behavior, and human performance. The course covers a variety of topics, including the formulation of research hypotheses, the construction of experimental designs, the development of experimental tasks and stimuli, how to avoid confounds and other threats to validity, procedural aspects of administering experiments, the analysis of experimental data, and the reporting of results obtained from experiments. Classes are conducted in an interactive seminar format, with extensive discussion of concrete examples, challenges, and solutions.