Trust in Science

Last registered on March 19, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Trust in Science
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015548
Initial registration date
March 13, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
March 19, 2025, 12:01 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Michael Cuna
Affiliation
University of Chicago
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
John List
PI Affiliation

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-03-17
End date
2025-06-30
Keywords
Behavior, Electoral
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
We run an artefactual field experiment (AFE) to identify the effects of study characteristics on the population's trust in its results.
In particular, we vary the sample size and representativeness of the sample to see how this affects individual's trust in the results and their willingness to vote for a policy that is derived from the study.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Cuna, Michael and John List. 2025. "Trust in Science." AEA RCT Registry. March 19. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15548-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
We run an AFE on Prolific where we identify how changes in study characteristics change willingness to vote for a policy based on a study and the general trust in that study.
Intervention Start Date
2025-03-17
Intervention End Date
2025-06-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
1) Liker scale on trust of results 2) willingness to vote on a related policy
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Heterogeneity on primary outcomes
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The experiment will be run on Prolific sample and will randomly vary characteristics of the study.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
complete randomization
Randomization Unit
individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1
Sample size: planned number of observations
1400
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
Doe not apply
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Social and Behavioral Sciences Institutional Review Board The University of Chicago
IRB Approval Date
2025-02-27
IRB Approval Number
IRB23-0501
Analysis Plan

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