Rarely has there been so many methodological debates in economics. In particular, with experimental economics coming of age, different approaches have emerged in the field. On the one hand, some are moving outside the traditional laboratory towards the field. On the other hand, even within more standard laboratory experiments, people take different approaches to the design of experiments mostly influenced by the way they feel theory informs their work. This evolution is happening in parallel with the field of experimental psychology which has a longer history, yet remains of little influence on the economists approach experiments.

This first conference on the Methods of Modern Experimental Economics will let influential contributors to these different approaches explain their point of view. This is a pre-conference, a chance for those who will contribute to the forthcoming conference volume to an exchange of views, which will be followed by a public conference closer to the release of the book where the final papers will be presented.

The book to come out of this, edited by Andrew Schotter and Guillaume Frechette, will be the second in a series of Handbooks on Economic Methodology, edited by Andrew Caplin and Andrew Schotter of NYU, to be published by Oxford University Press in conjunction with the Center for Experimental Social Science at NYU.