Causal Inference in the Presence of Interference for Randomized Experiments

NSF Award Search · 01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT · $155,146 · view on nsf.gov ↗

Abstract

Statistical experiments can improve our understanding of complex systems, including the communities, organizations, and local economies that make up our society. In these systems, individuals may be connected by mechanisms such as social influence, economic competition, sharing of information, or the transmission of disease. The presence of such mechanisms is known as interference. Interference greatly complicates statistical analysis. It weakens the conclusions that may be drawn from an experiment, and requires the usage of assumptions whose correctness may be difficult to judge. As a result, statistical conclusions drawn under interference can have considerable caveats or limitations. This project will study interference and how it can be more safely modeled. Doing so can help researchers think more clearly about their experimental results when interference is present. It can also help researchers make fewer assumptions when they interpret their data. This research will help investigators in fields like economics, which influence daily lives of people in society. The project will extend a promising approach for detecting and describing interference, so that it may be applied to a broader variety of settings with no assumptions beyond what is known about the design of an experiment. It will also develop a new semiparametric approach for modeling interference, which can help researchers to draw credible statistical conclusions even when interference is strongly measurable

Key facts

NSF award ID
2515792
Awardee
Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
SAM.gov UEI
U3NKNFLNQ613
PI
David Choi
Primary program
01002526DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
All programs
Estimated total
$155,146
Funds obligated
$155,146
Transaction type
Standard Grant
Period
09/01/2025 → 08/31/2027