Research Paper

The research paper is worth 20% of your grade and includes:

1. Title page - title, your name, course number and name, date
2. Abstract - a one paragraph summary of your paper
3. Introduction and literature review - motivate your research topic (based on proposal); present the work of others and unresolved issues in the field
4. Theory - A description of the conceptual model used and hypothesis
5. Data - Describe the source of your data, what you did with it and univariate statistics
6. Results - Report your multivariate statistical findings that employs graphs, tables, etc., plus an economic* analysis of these results
7. Conclusion - Summarize your findings, how they compare with earlier literature, and address any policy implications and unresolved issues.
8. References
9. Figures
10. Tables

The first draft of your paper is due towards the end of the semester (optional). This draft should be sent via e-mail to your professor. You will receive a grade on this paper and suggestions for revision. The grade on the revised paper, due during the final exam period, will override the grade on the draft paper.

*Note: don't confuse statistical significance with economic significance. Economic significance can be demonstrated with:

1. Elasticity
2. A chart of the relationship between two variables
3. Forecasts
4. Consumer surplus estimates
5. Aggregation of impacts, relative to GDP, or other benchmark
6. Recommended reading: Hoover and Siegler, “McCloskey and Significance Testing in Economics”, Ziliak and McCloskey, "Size Matters", The Economist, Signifying Nothing [pdf]