Imbens, Guido WLemieux, Thomas2009-06-082008Imbens, Guido W. and Thomas Lemieux. 2008. The regression discontinuity design — theory and applications. Special Issue, Journal of Econometrics 142, no. 2: 611-614.0304-4076http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:3043411In Regression Discontinuity (RD) designs for evaluating causal effects of interventions, assignment to a treatment is determined at least partly by the value of an observed covariate lying on either side of a fixed threshold. These designs were first introduced in the evaluation literature by Thistlewaite and Campbell (1960). With the exception of a few unpublished theoretical papers, these methods did not attract much attention in the economics literature until recently. Starting in the late 1990s, there has been a large number of studies in economics applying and extending RD methods. In this paper we review some of the practical and theoretical issues involved in the implementation of RD methods.en-US10.1016/j.jeconom.2007.05.008