Which methodological contribution is Esther Duflo credited with?

• A. Developing purely theoretical models for predicting outcomes.
• B. Emphasizing observational studies using historical data.
• C. Pioneering the use of randomized controlled trials in development economics.
• D. Focusing on macro-level policy without field experiments.

Answer: (C)

This question tests understanding of who Esther Duflo is credited with innovating in development economics. She is known for pioneering the use of randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effectiveness of development interventions, bringing rigorous field experiments into economics. This approach helps determine causality by randomly assigning participants to receive an intervention or serve as a control, reducing biases from confounding factors. Her work, including co-founding J-PAL to promote and disseminate such evaluations, shifted the field toward evidence-based policy. The other options describe approaches that rely on theory alone, non-random observational data, or macro-level policy without field testing, which do not capture the experimental method that defines her contribution.