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A Practical Introduction to Regression Discontinuity Designs: Foundations

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  • Matias D. Cattaneo
  • Nicolas Idrobo
  • Rocio Titiunik

Abstract

In this Element and its accompanying Element, Matias D. Cattaneo, Nicolas Idrobo, and Rocio Titiunik provide an accessible and practical guide for the analysis and interpretation of Regression Discontinuity (RD) designs that encourages the use of a common set of practices and facilitates the accumulation of RD-based empirical evidence. In this Element, the authors discuss the foundations of the canonical Sharp RD design, which has the following features: (i) the score is continuously distributed and has only one dimension, (ii) there is only one cutoff, and (iii) compliance with the treatment assignment is perfect. In the accompanying Element, the authors discuss practical and conceptual extensions to the basic RD setup.

Suggested Citation

  • Matias D. Cattaneo & Nicolas Idrobo & Rocio Titiunik, 2019. "A Practical Introduction to Regression Discontinuity Designs: Foundations," Papers 1911.09511, arXiv.org.
    • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:1911.09511
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    7. Klašnja, Marko & Titiunik, Rocío, 2017. "The Incumbency Curse: Weak Parties, Term Limits, and Unfulfilled Accountability," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 111(1), pages 129-148, February.
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