OxLab Experiments
OxLab is an experimental laboratory for the social sciences, set up by Nir Vulkan (SBS) and Helen Margetts (OII) in 2006 with some funding from the University of Oxford Fell Fund. We have run a range of laboratory and field experiments from OxLab, from both economics and political science perspectives. Experiments include investigation into the effect of different information environments on collective action; the impact of different types of e-government provision on citizens' information seeking behaviour and deadline effects in auction design. Some of the outputs of the lab are available below.
The massive growth in Internet-mediated interactions between societies, governments and commercial organisations of all kinds creates a need for innovative methods to research online activity. Laboratory-based experiments where subjects are brought in and incentivized (via cash payments) to participate in games or information-seeking tasks on networked computers are an excellent way to develop such methodologies. Such laboratories have been used by experimental economists for some time, but the great expansion in online social and commercial activity means that as well as being more central to Economics research they have growing utility across other academic disciplines, particularly sociology, computer science and political science.
The lab is directed by Nir Vulkan (SBS) and Helen Margetts (OII) and managed by Lucy Bartlette (SBS), and Scott Hale (OII). Questions regarding OxLab should be directed to oxlab@oii.ox.ac.uk.