Measurement Issues in the Second Generation of Social Experiments: The Health Insurance Study.
Purchase
Purchase Print Copy
| Format | List Price | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Add to Cart | Paperback17 pages | $20.00 | $16.00 20% Web Discount |
A discussion of the Hawthorne Effect in social experiments and how this effect is estimated in the Health Insurance Study, in which 2000 families are enrolled in different plans that vary the fraction of medical care expenditures the consumer must pay. The Hawthorne Effect states that those involved in an experiment will behave differently simply because they are enrolled in the experiment. It is difficult to measure such an effect, so the experiment is designed to measure effects of certain experimental methods (as opposed to enrollment in the experiment) by splitting the observed sample on the relevant methods, which results in a partial estimate of methods effects. This paper describes those aspects of the experimental design that permit estimating certain methods effects, including (1) the incentive to file claims and the possible stimulus to utilization from frequent questioning; (2) the medical screening examination; (3) the participation incentive payments; and (4) the limited duration of the experiment. 17 pp. Ref.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation Paper series. The paper was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1948 to 2003 that captured speeches, memorials, and derivative research, usually prepared on authors' own time and meant to be the scholarly or scientific contribution of individual authors to their professional fields. Papers were less formal than reports and did not require rigorous peer review.
This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.