README for Notebooks

Overview

This folder contains R notebooks used for replication and analysis tasks in the OutcomeWeights - Extending Treatment Effect Estimation project. The notebooks demonstrate the application of the OutcomeWeights package on 401(k) data and serve as a foundation for extending the package's functionality.

Contents

Notebooks

1. Notebook_Average.Rmd
2. Focuses on estimating the Average Treatment Effects (ATE) using the OutcomeWeights package.

3. Includes replications of average effect calculations and validation with the 401(k) dataset.

4. Notebook_Heterogeneous.Rmd

5. Examines Heterogeneous Treatment Effects (HTE) based on the 401(k) dataset.
6. Demonstrates the use of causal forests to estimate subgroup effects.

Supporting Materials

• Dataset: The notebooks use the 401(k) dataset bundled within the OutcomeWeights package.
• Outputs: Graphs and tables generated during the replication are saved in the outputs/figures directory for reference.

Installation and Setup

To run the notebooks:
1. Ensure the required R packages are installed:
R install.packages(c("grf", "hdm", "OutcomeWeights"))
2. Open the .Rmd files in RStudio or any compatible R Notebook interface.
3. Run the code chunks sequentially to replicate the results.

Usage

• Notebook_Average.Rmd:
• Explore how to compute ATE using the OutcomeWeights package.

• Validate results using the built-in functions and manual calculations.

• Notebook_Heterogeneous.Rmd:

• Investigate heterogeneous effects using causal forests.
• Analyze subgroup-level treatment effects and compare them with average effects.

Notes

• Ensure a working internet connection for downloading required packages if not already installed.
• Use the provided requirements.R file in the root directory to check for dependencies.

References

• OutcomeWeights Documentation
• Generalized Random Forests Documentation
• Research Paper: "Treatment Effects as Weighted Outcomes"

For further queries, please refer to the main README.md file.