In the context of natural experiments, what does the researcher typically do?

In natural experiments, researchers take advantage of pre-existing conditions rather than creating new independent variables or manipulating variables directly. This approach allows researchers to observe and analyze the effects of naturally occurring events or variations in the environment. For example, if a new law is enacted in one region but not another, a researcher can study the outcomes in both places to gauge the law's impact without directly intervening.

This method is valuable because it can provide insights into phenomena that would be unethical or impractical to manipulate in a controlled environment. While natural experiments cannot control all variables as tightly as randomized controlled trials, they offer a unique opportunity to study real-world situations where random assignment is not possible, thus yielding valuable data about causal relationships in a natural setting.