articleSocial Science & MedicineDec 25, 2017HYBRID OA

Understanding and misunderstanding randomized controlled trials

ADAngus DeatonNCNancy Cartwright

Princeton University · National Bureau of Economic Research · +3 more institutions

PubMed
Indexed incrossrefpubmed

Abstract

Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) are increasingly popular in the social sciences, not only in medicine. We argue that the lay public, and sometimes researchers, put too much trust in RCTs over other methods of investigation. Contrary to frequent claims in the applied literature, randomization does not equalize everything other than the treatment in the treatment and control groups, it does not automatically deliver a precise estimate of the average treatment effect (ATE), and it does not relieve us of the need to think about (observed or unobserved) covariates. Finding out whether an estimate was generated by chance is more difficult than commonly believed. At best, an RCT yields an unbiased estimate, but…

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Topics
Keywords
  • Randomized controlled trial
  • Medicine
  • Psychology
  • Surgery
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