Experiments in finance: From no to maybe to yes

Since the inception of the behavioral finance paradigm, experiments in financial research have grown significantly in importance and prevalence. Yet, even after decades of research, experiments are also subject to specific criticism. In this article, we first review why we need experiments in financial research. Next, we discuss three approaches how to tackle future research questions with experimental methods. We argue that experiments are necessary for complete scientific validation and an important ingredient to aid in the development of improved (behavioral) financial theory, but as one method.