Causal inference when you can't experiment: difference-in-differences and synthetic controls

When you need to untangle cause and effect, but you can’t run an experiment, it’s time to get creative. This episode covers difference in differences and synthetic controls, two observational causal inference techniques that researchers have used to understand causality in complex real-world situations.

Relevant links:

• Want to make good business decisions? Learn causality

• Synthetic control methods for comparative case studies: Estimating the effect of California’s Tobacco Control Program

• Consumer heterogeneity and paid search effectiveness: A large scale field experiment