ERIC Number: EJ1465359
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Mar
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1098-2140
EISSN: EISSN-1557-0878
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Analysis of Regression Discontinuity Designs with a Binary Moderating Variable
American Journal of Evaluation, v46 n1 p145-165 2025
Regression discontinuity (RD) designs are increasingly used for causal evaluations. However, the literature contains little guidance for conducting a moderation analysis within an RDD context. The current article focuses on moderation with a single binary variable. A simulation study compares: (1) different bandwidth selectors and (2) local polynomial regressions with interactions to local regressions on subsets of the data defined by values of the moderating variable. We find that existing bandwidth selectors optimized for main effects will choose bandwidths that are too small for moderation analysis. Additionally, choosing an optimal bandwidth for the subset regression approach may not be feasible for small to moderate sample sizes unless the moderator prevalence is near 0.5 and correlation with the assignment variable is small. We conclude that when sample sizes are small a global regression approach is likely to be preferred to utilizing bandwidth selectors optimized for main effects.
Descriptors: Regression (Statistics), Causal Models, Evaluation Methods, Multivariate Analysis, Predictor Variables, Simulation
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Related Records: ED654813
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Authoring Institution: N/A
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305A180154
Department of Education Funded: Yes
Author Affiliations: 1RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA; 2University of Connecticut, Research Methods, Measurement and Evaluation Program Department of Educational Psychology, Neag School of Education