2024 Summer School

Implementing Experimental Designs: Best Practices for Software Programming

Date

Tuesday 9 - Thursday 11 July 2024

Venue

Brookfield, University of Leicester School of Business

About the Summer School

This two-and-a-half-day summer school guides junior experimental economics researchers in the best practices for translating experimental design ideas into implementable experiments, whether in the laboratory or online. In contrast to courses that focus on software packages (such as oTree or z-Tree courses), this course teaches you how to create a program that is efficient, reliable, and enables collaboration, adaptability, and reproducibility. The course is taught by Ted Turocy (University of East Anglia) and Boon Han Koh (University of Exeter).

On the first day of the course, we will introduce a conceptual framework for implementing experimental designs. This includes defining the different states of an experiment and developing storyboards and wireframes for the information screens, input screens, and calculations/output screens.

On the second day, we will demonstrate how to translate the designs to software, including defining groups and matchings, sequential decision-making, multiple decision-making periods, randomization devices, and systematically recording variables for logging and reproducibility.

In the course's final part, we will briefly introduce key technologies used in producing professional-looking applications, including webpage generation via templates, CSS and Bootstrap, and JavaScript and jQuery.

Throughout, we will emphasise the use of git and GitHub for version control and collaboration and the management of Python virtual environments for reproducibility and portability. This is, therefore, not just another oTree course! By the end of the course, you will acquire skills that are transferrable to other platforms or technologies.

Fees and registration

Early registration:

PhD students - £70.00
Early career researchers - £120.00

For early registrations, optional bed and breakfast accommodation at the University's conference centre, College Court, is available at the rate of £40.00 per night.

Standard registration:

PhD students - £98.00
Early career researchers - £148.00

Registration

An initiative of BEE-UK

This Summer School is offered as an initiative of the recently created network of Behavioural and Experimental Economists working in the UK (BEE-UK), which will hold its 1st Annual Conference at the University of Leicester School of Business on the 11 and 12 July 2024, straight after the conclusion of this Summer School. Summer School participants are encouraged to participate in the BEE-UK Annual Conference. For more information, visit the conference website.

Key dates

Application deadline: 28 April 2024
Notification of acceptances: Early May 2024
Early registration: 2 June 2024
Late registration: 23 June 2024
Summer School dates: Morning on 9 July - lunchtime on 11 July 2024

Contact

For queries please email ulsb.events@le.ac.uk