Exploring Psychology in the Field: Steps and Examples From the Used-Car Market

Abstract

The growing availability of large datasets in a variety of domains presents an opportunity for researchers to use field data to better understand psychological concepts. I discuss, from an empirical economics point of view, steps for how to study cognition in large datasets. I use two recent papers that explore psychology in the used-car market as motivating examples. These examples help illustrate the potential importance of big data as a way to explore human psychology and cognition.