Computational Reproducibility in Economics

On June 27th, BITSS hosted two virtual sessions on research reproducibility at the 95th Annual Conference of the Western Economic Association International (WEAI). The sessions presented resources and lessons learned from the Accelerating Computation Reproducibility in Economics (ACRE) project led BITSS and AEA Data Editor Lars Vilhuber.

How to Teach Reproducibility in Classwork — Fernando Hoces de la Guardia (slides and materials)

Fernando Hoces de la Guardia (Project Scientist, BITSS) presented curricular resources for social science instructors interested in teaching reproducible research practices, as well as a forthcoming online platform that will facilitate the teaching, conduct, assessment, and sharing of computational reproductions as part of the larger ACRE project. The session also provided an opportunity for hands-on practice with foundational reproducibility tools.

Implementing Increased Transparency and Reproducibility in Economics — Lars Vilhuber (slides and materials)

Lars Vilhuber (Data Editor, American Economic Association) described the context in which current discussions around replicability in the social sciences are occurring, the motivation behind the recent focus on pre-publication reproducibility, and the lessons learned so far. As Data Editor responsible for pre-publication reproducibility for 8 journals, Dr. Vilhuber delivered practical recommendations for creating reproducible research. The solutions to these problems will change the way research will be taught and conducted, in economics in particular, and in the social sciences more broadly. The implications affect undergraduate and graduate teaching, research infrastructure, and habits.