JEM-Sponsored Session on "Big Data and Economic Methodology"
Call for Papers
Special Session Organizers:
John B. Davis, Marquette University, USA
D. Wade Hands, University of Puget Sound, USA
Shu-Heng Chen, National Chengchi University, Taiwan
Big data is an integral feature of the ICT-enabled digital society and it is not just about data. Big data differs from our conventional data not just in terms of volume, but also in its modes of generation, dissemination, processing, and its repercussions on science. A selection of papers from this special session, to be published in a future issue of the Journal of Economic Methodology, is expected to address two issues. First, they should evaluate big data from a phenomenological viewpoint, and examine how people approach and experience the big data phenomenon. In particular, they should scrutinize whether these behavioral modes can be accounted for by existing economic theory, and review the challenges they pose to standard theorizing about economic behavior. Second, taking big data as new data type, the papers should examine the epistemological limits associated with big data in terms of how big data affects the way we study economics, including its impact on the development of econometrics, experimental economics, computational economics, and on the various paradigms currently employed in economics.
Broader methodological ideas, as distinct from the specific methods of interest to practitioners in the field, should take the center stage, and authors interested in participating in this session should develop their paper to emphasize epistemological and methodological themes. Only a 3-page extended abstract is required for general submission, but priority of acceptance will be given to full papers.
Papers accepted for publication in the JEM symposium will go through the standard JEM referee process.
A PDF version of the CFP can be downloaded from here