Reporting Methodological Items in Randomized Experiments in Political Science
Open Access
- 23 February 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
- Vol. 628 (1), 112-131
- https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716209351518
Abstract
This article discusses the arguments for using the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) procedures in political science field experiments, with the aim of improving the clarity and transparency of research work and reducing the possibility of bias. The article reviews the background to CONSORT, which is increasingly required for carrying out and reporting trials in healthcare and other disciplines. It sets out the main elements of the scheme and then applies its criteria to evaluate a published Get Out the Vote (GOTV) study by John and Brannan (2008). The CONSORT checklist shows the methods in this article to be clear and transparent but that CONSORT could improve the reporting of turnout experiments, such as details of the numbers going through the trial at each stage. The article argues that applying CONSORT to reports of trials in political science journals is a feasible and desirable objective.Keywords
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