This paper compares the economic questions addressed by instrumental variables estimators with those addressed by structural approaches. We discuss Marschak’s Maxim: estimators should be selected on the basis of their ability to answer well-posed economic problems with minimal assumptions. A key identifying assumption that allows structural methods to be more informative than IV can be tested with data and does not have to be imposed.
Authors
![James Heckman](/sites/default/files/styles/square_desktop/public/2022-07/James%20Heckman.jpg?itok=zU2q-IGg)
Research Associate University of Chicago
James is a Research Associate of the IFS and the Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago.
![Person graphic](/sites/default/files/styles/square_desktop/public/2022-06/IFS-person-graphic.png?itok=hWCtTSrz)
Sergio Urzua
Journal article details
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.jeconom.2009.09.006
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Issue
- Volume 156, Issue 1, May 2010
Suggested citation
Heckman, J and Urzua, S. (2010). 'Comparing IV with structural models: what simple IV can and cannot identify' 156(1/2010)
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