I think learning boosts earnings. I don't think we've been very good at proving that schooling does. Do you need to read chapter six of Mastering Metrics, which is all about the relationship between schooling and earnings? And we trace the history of that question. You know, there's quite a few findings out there that are worth paying attention to and worth taking account of when it comes time to make policy.
Joshua Angrist of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology talks to EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the craft of econometrics--how to use economic thinking and statistical methods to make sense of data and uncover causation. Angrist argues that improvements in research design along with various econometric techniques have improved the credibility of measurement in a complex world. Roberts pushes back and the conversation concludes with a discussion of how to assess the reliability of findings in controversial public policy areas.