Using Randomized Controlled Trials and Network Analysis in International Economics: An Introduction

Abstract

This article introduces two methodologies that can be largely useful to empirical analysis in international economics but have not been fully utilized in the field: randomized controlled trials and network analysis. These methods can con tribute to a number of topics in international economics including learning by exporting, FDI spillovers, and international diffusion of knowledge and economic shocks, correcting for biases due to endogeneity and specifying channels of diffu sion. composite measure of perceptions of exporting activity constructed from five questions such as how difficult it is to adapt products to make them suitable for exporting, and another measure of preparation for exporting activity constructed from six questions such as whether the firm had accessed any website for trade fairs. These questions for perception of and preparation for exporting activity are mostly taken from Breinlich et al. (2017). Information on these mea sures and other firm attributes was collected by face - to - face surveys at the firm level once before the experiment and twice after that.