Best Practice Recommendations for Replicating Experiments in Public Administration

Richard M. WALKER*, Gene A. BREWER, M. Jin LEE, Nicolai PETROVSKY, Arjen VAN WITTELOOSTUIJN

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal PublicationsJournal Article (refereed)peer-review

67 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Replication is an important mechanism through which broad lessons for theory and practice can be drawn in the applied interdisciplinary social science field of public administration. We suggest a common replication framework for public administration that is illustrated by experimental work in the field. Drawing on knowledge from other disciplines, together with our experience in replicating several experiments on topics such as decision making, organizational rules, and government-citizen relationships, we provide an overview of the replication process. We then distill this knowledge into seven decision points that offer a clear set of best practices on how to design and implement replications in public administration. We conclude by arguing that replication should be part of the normal scientific process in public administration to help to build valid middle-range theories and provide valuable lessons to practice.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)609-626
Number of pages18
JournalJournal of Public Administration Research and Theory
Volume29
Issue number4
Early online date14 Aug 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2019
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Best Practice Recommendations for Replicating Experiments in Public Administration'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this