Experimental Sociology

Editors

Helsinki Institute of Urban and Regional Studies (Urbaria), University of Helsinki, 00100 Helsinki, Finland
Interests: media and technologies in interaction; relations and the distribution of interactional expertise in the neighborhoods
Department of Social Research, University of Helsinki, 00100 Helsinki, Finland
Interests: social psychology

Topical Collection Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is devoted to experimental research in social sciences. Empirical, theoretical and methodological contributions are welcome, as well as submissions concerning ethical aspects of experimental studies. Experimental research is considered broadly and may include classical experiments, quasi-experimental field tests, game experiments, ‘natural’ experiments, simulations, and thought experiments, among others. We also welcome reviews and meta-reviews of experimental studies and their findings. We will consider numerous types of experiments, such as laboratory and field experiments, and quasi-experimental comparisons.

Experimental sociology has a long history. It was a strongly developing area before the Second World War, but faded thereafter. The ethical dilemmas plaguing some experimental designs were detrimental to its recovery. In recent years, experimental social science has had somewhat of a renaissance thanks to a developing methodical palette that opens a plethora of new research designs. In addition to classical co-present settings, new media and technologies have introduced fresh settings for experimentation in online realms, social media, and virtual and augmented realities. Experimental social sciences form an interdisciplinary area that connects sociological questions to social psychological underpinnings and economic conditions. Classical issues from norms to social roles and trust to morality can be intersected in studies of social action and interaction at micro and/or macro levels.

Prof. Dr. Ilkka Arminen
Dr. Mika Simonen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the collection website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

  • comparison
  • experiment
  • ethics
  • field experiment
  • quasi-experiment
  • micro/macro
  • natural experiment
  • simulation
  • social action and interaction
  • thought experiment

Published Papers (1 paper)

2023

19 pages, 730 KiB  
Article
Does Frequency or Amount Matter? An Exploratory Analysis the Perceptions of Four Universal Basic Income Proposals
by Leah Hamilton, Mathieu Despard, Stephen Roll, Dylan Bellisle, Christian Hall and Allison Wright
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(3), 133; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12030133 - 27 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2207
Abstract
Advocates for a Universal Basic Income (UBI) argue that it would provide citizens with a basic foundation for financial security, boost the economy, alleviate poverty, encourage entrepreneurship, reduce crime, and insulate the employment sector against job losses due to automation. Still, the idea [...] Read more.
Advocates for a Universal Basic Income (UBI) argue that it would provide citizens with a basic foundation for financial security, boost the economy, alleviate poverty, encourage entrepreneurship, reduce crime, and insulate the employment sector against job losses due to automation. Still, the idea lags in popularity in the United States compared to existing cash policies such as the annual Earned Income Tax Credit and one-time COVID-19 relief packages. We hypothesize that this disparity is related to predicted uses of a UBI in comparison to annual or lump sum cash programs. In this survey of 836 Americans, we explore whether predicted behavioral responses to four randomly assigned hypothetical cash transfer scenarios vary across the domains of amount and frequency. Respondents are more likely to associate monthly payments with work disincentives and lump-sum transfers with debt repayment. Implications for UBI advocates include the need to continue educating the public on the empirical associations between UBI, employment, and expenditures. Full article
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