MFSEs

What are Multifactorial Survey Experiments (MFSEs)?

In an experiment there are at least two groups including a treatment group and a control group. Subjects are randomly assigned to the treatment or control group. Due to randomization the subjects in the treatment and control group have the same characteristics, i.e. they are comparable. If we find a difference between the two groups we can attribute it to the treatment, i.e. an intervention made by the researcher. This is a very powerful tool because this way we can find out how the treatment factor affects the outcome at hand. In a multifactorial experiment, researchers vary multiple treatment factors and randomly assign subjects to the multiple factor combinations. If such a multifactorial experiment is integrated in a survey, we have what is called a multifactorial survey experiment.

Photo by Chantal Ingabire and Christine Bigler.

Photo by Chantal Ingabire and Christine Bigler.

Factorial Survey Experiments

Factorial surveys, also known as vignette studies, include a description of a situation which varies in a number of attributes or characteristics, and respondents are asked to evaluate this situation regarding acceptance, support, fairness etc. Here is an example:

A married couple both died shortly after each other. Relatives decide how to share the land between the two children. They owned 1.0 hectare of land and have a female and a male child. The male child inherits all of the land. What do you think? How just is this allocation between the two children?

totally unjust -3, -2, -1, 0, +1, +2, +3 totally just

Stated Choice Experiments

In a Stated Choice Experiment respondents chose from at least two alternatives, which vary in a number of attributes, the one they prefer most.