Causal Reasoning in Social Science

The picture shows a scatterplot with a regression line for correlational interpretation and a 45-degree diagonal for set-theoretical interpretation

In this project, I collaborate with Ingo Rohlfing to investigate causal reasoning in social science research. Causal reasoning refers to how one identifies causality, i.e. the ways in which individuals use their beliefs about cause and effect to make inferences, decisions, and predictions about events and phenomena. Researchers doing empirical research in the social sciences either subscribe to a set-relational or correlational perspective on causation. We conduct experimental web-surveys to uncover if and how researchers decide between these perspectives.