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Introduction to special issue “Understanding Cognition and Decision Making by Children.” Studying decision-making in children: Challenges and opportunities

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  • Brocas, Isabelle
  • Carrillo, Juan D.

Abstract

Decision-making in children and adolescents is receiving increasing attention among economists. Studies shed light on opportunities for economists to understand the developmental causes of anomalous behavior in adults and to propose interventions at a young age capable of improving adult outcomes. Nevertheless, the study of children brings also new challenges that require methodological adjustments. Indeed, children are not little adults. They have their own ways of accounting for information, their own motivations, and their own limitations. These are critically linked to brain development and cognitive development, which operate in concert and shape behavior. These differences with respect to adult populations impose constraints on experimental designs. This special issue provides several examples of paradigms in which children behave differently from adults. All these studies share the need to account for age-related factors in the design of protocols. In this introduction, we discuss the pitfalls, challenges and opportunities associated with experiments in children and adolescents.

Suggested Citation

  • Brocas, Isabelle & Carrillo, Juan D., 2020. "Introduction to special issue “Understanding Cognition and Decision Making by Children.” Studying decision-making in children: Challenges and opportunities," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 777-783.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:179:y:2020:i:c:p:777-783
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2020.01.020
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Alice Guerra & Emanuela Randon & Antonello E. Scorcu, 2022. "Gender and deception: Evidence from survey data among adolescent gamblers," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(4), pages 618-645, November.
    3. John A. List & Ragan Petrie & Anya Samek, 2023. "How Experiments with Children Inform Economics," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 61(2), pages 504-564, June.
    4. Azevedo E Castro De Cardim,Joana & Amaro Da Costa Luz Carneiro,Pedro Manuel & Carvalho,Leandro S. & De Walque,Damien B. C. M., 2022. "Early Education, Preferences, and Decision-Making Abilities," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10187, The World Bank.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Developmental decision-making; Experimental methods;

    JEL classification:

    • B41 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Economic Methodology - - - Economic Methodology
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments

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