2023/06/20 by Paul Cornelius Bauer, Camille Landesvatter · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research
paper · pdf · doi:10.31219/osf.io/4dahm
openalex publication_date 2023/06/20 · openalex created_date 2023/06/22 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/27
Ideal experiments (IEs) describe hypothetical studies that we would carry out without practical, ethical, or resource-related constraints. IEs can help us to identify pitfalls and deficiencies in causal research projects (e.g., Angrist and Pischke 2008). We contend that the focus of IEs is to narrow and introduce the more general notion of ideal research designs (IDRs). IRDs go beyond IEs in that they also speak to issues such as measurement errors that are rarely the focus of IEs. After reviewing how researchers define and advocate using ideal experiments (IEs), we discuss what components IDRs should encompass drawing on well-known error frameworks. After an applied example that explains how IRDs can be used in research, we explore how empirical researchers are using IDRs. While we find few examples, they attest to the usefulness of IRDs to evaluate research designs that have been realized or are planned for the future.