Reference no: EM133546901

A researcher is trying to figure out whether "nurture" (childhood socialization and environment) or "nature" (genetic endowments) explain voter turnout. The researcher accesses the Los Angeles twins registry (where twins who sign up as research subjects are listed). For each pair of twins the researcher knows whether they are identical (genetically speaking) or fraternal (with much less genetic similarity). (Identical twins always have the same sex, whereas fraternal twins often consist of a boy and a girl.) Then the researcher uses publicly available voting data to determine whether the twins voted. The researcher computes the proportion of identical twins who either both vote or both do not vote (that is, the proportion with identical turnout behavior) and the proportion of fraternal twins who either both vote or both do not vote (that is, the proportion with identical turnout behavior). The researcher finds that 80% of the identical twins have identical turnout behavior whereas only 20% of the fraternal twins do.

1. What research design is being employed in this study?

2. What is the implied treatment in this study?

3. Is the information provided in the question sufficient for making a causal inference? Why or why not? (Use the four causal hurdles.)