At Jim Greiner's (Harvard) good suggestion, I pass along the following request.
Jim, along with Andrea Matthews, a recent HLS grad, seek assistance on a research project. They are attempting to find as many examples as possible of what they call “randomized field experiments in the United States legal profession.” They define their search as follows: A field experiment conducted in which randomization (or something close to it) was done for the purpose of gaining knowledge in a setting in which randomized (or approximately randomized) assignment replaces a decision/judgment that would otherwise have been made by a member of the U.S. legal profession. To be sure, Jim and Andrea understand that their definition does not correspond to all studies in which randomization (particularly randomization done for another purpose, such as to maintain an appearance of fairness, as when judges are randomized to cases) can be used to gain important knowledge. They have focused on the set of studies identified above because their current research interest is in the way that randomized studies challenge the prevailing epistemological norms and professional identity of those in power in United States law.
To help illustrate what they're looking for, a draft 3-pp bibliography (embedded below in separate pages) illustrates what they've gathered thus far. Jim and Andrea hoping blog readers might know of others and ask that anyone who might know of more email Jim directly at: jgreiner(at)law.harvard.edu
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