Economics in the age of big data.
The quality and quantity of data on economic activity are expanding rapidly. Empirical research increasingly relies on newly available large-scale administrative data or private sector data that often is obtained through collaboration with private firms. Here we highlight some challenges in accessing and using these new data. We also discuss how new data sets may change the statistical methods used by economists and the types of questions posed in empirical research.
Department of Economics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. National Bureau of Economic Research, 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. leinav@stanford.edu.
Liran
L
Einav
Department of Economics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. National Bureau of Economic Research, 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
Jonathan
J
Levin
D001185:Artificial Intelligence; D066264:Datasets as Topic; D004467:Economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017059:Models, Econometric; D017149:Private Sector; D017150:Public Sector; D012942:Social Sciences / Q000639:trends*