📚 IGCSE Edexcel Economics: Experimental Operations Guide | IGCSE Edexcel 经济：实验操作指南
In economics, concepts often feel abstract—until you test them. This operations guide introduces simple, hands-on experiments that you can run in a classroom or at home to understand how markets, incentives, and behaviours shape economic outcomes. Designed for IGCSE Edexcel Economics students, these experiments reinforce key syllabus topics, from demand and supply to market failure and government intervention. Follow the step-by-step instructions to simulate real economic decisions, collect data, and reflect on results.
在经济学科中，概念常常显得抽象——直到你进行实际检验。本操作指南介绍一系列简单易行的动手实验，你可以在课堂上或家里进行，以理解市场、激励和行为如何塑造经济结果。这些实验专为 IGCSE Edexcel 经济学学生设计，可巩固从供需到市场失灵和政府干预等核心大纲主题。按照分步说明模拟真实的经济决策，收集数据，并对结果进行反思。
1. Introduction to Economic Experiments | 经济学实验导论
An economic experiment is a controlled simulation in which participants make decisions with real or hypothetical rewards, revealing how markets and individuals actually behave. Unlike natural sciences, economics deals with human choices, and experiments bridge the gap between textbook theory and real-world behaviour. They test hypotheses about demand, supply, pricing, and cooperation in a safe environment.
经济学实验是一种受控模拟，参与者带着真实或假设的奖励做出决策，从而揭示市场和个人实际如何行动。与自然科学不同，经济学涉及人类选择，而实验弥合了教科书理论与现实世界行为之间的差距。它们在安全环境中检验关于需求、供给、定价和合作的假设。
For IGCSE Edexcel students, experiments bring topics like the price mechanism, market clearing, government intervention, and behavioural economics to life. They encourage you to observe how quickly markets adjust, why shortages arise under price ceilings, and how fairness concerns can override pure self-interest. Each experiment in this guide links directly to syllabus content and develops the analytical skills needed for examination questions.
对 IGCSE Edexcel 学生来说，实验让价格机制、市场出清、政府干预和行为经济学等主题变得生动。它们鼓励你观察市场调整有多快，为什么价格上限下会出现短缺，以及公平关怀如何压倒纯粹的私利。本指南中的每个实验都直接与大纲内容相联系，并培养回答考试问题所需的分析技能。
2. Setting Up a Classroom Lab | 建立课堂实验室
You don’t need expensive equipment to run an economics experiment. Most activities require only paper slips, tokens or play money, a visible board, and a clear role for each participant. Begin by dividing the class into two sides—for example, buyers and sellers—and distribute numbered cards that represent willingness to pay or cost of production. Keep records in a simple spreadsheet or on poster paper so results are visible.
你不需要昂贵的设备来开展经济学实验。大多数活动只需要纸条、代币或游戏币、一块可视板，以及每个参与者明确的角色。先把班级分成两方——例如买方和卖方——然后分发编号卡片，代表支付意愿或生产成本。将记录保存在简单的电子表格或大海报纸上，以便结果一目了然。
A reliable experiment also requires clear rules and incentives. State the objective (e.g. earn maximum profit) and describe what each decision means. If using hypothetical currency, explain how it converts to small prizes or extra credit to keep motivation realistic. Always allow a practice round so participants understand the process before data collection begins.
一项可靠的实验还需要清晰的规则和激励。说明目标（例如获取最大利润）并描述每项决定的含义。如果使用假想货币，需解释它如何兑换成小奖品或额外学分，以保持动机真实可信。始终安排一轮练习，让参与者在数据收集开始前理解流程。
3. The Supply and Demand Auction | 供给与需求拍卖实验
This classic double oral auction instantly demonstrates how markets find equilibrium. Give each buyer a card stating their maximum willingness to pay; each seller receives a card showing their unit cost. Buyers can only purchase if price is at or below their value; sellers can only sell if price covers their cost. The teacher calls out possible prices, and participants raise hands to trade.
这个经典的双向口头拍卖能瞬间展示市场如何找到均衡。给每位买方一张卡片，写明其最高支付意愿；每位卖方收到一张显示其单位成本的卡片。买方只有在价格不高于其价值时才可购买；卖方只有在价格覆盖成本时才可出售。教师喊出可能的价格，参与者举手进行交易。
As trading proceeds, record each accepted transaction price on the board. Quickly you will see prices cluster around a narrow range—the market-clearing equilibrium price. Count the number of trades and compare with the quantity where supply equals demand. The experiment visually confirms the law of supply and demand: prices converge where plans of buyers and sellers match.
随着交易进行，将每一笔成交价记录在板子上。很快，你会看到价格聚集在一个窄幅区间——即市场出清的均衡价格。统计交易数量，并与供给等于需求的数量进行对比。该实验直观地证实了供需定律：价格汇聚在买方和卖方计划相符的地方。
4. Simulating Market Equilibrium | 模拟市场均衡
To deepen understanding, repeat the auction with a different distribution of values and costs, creating a shift in demand or supply. For instance, give all buyers higher willingness-to-pay numbers to simulate increased demand due to a new advertising campaign. Observe how the equilibrium price and quantity rise. Then, increase all sellers’ costs to show a leftward shift of supply, driving price up and quantity down.
为了加深理解，用不同的价值和成本分布再次进行拍卖，制造需求或供给的变化。例如，给所有买方更高的支付意愿数值，以模拟新广告活动带来的需求增加。观察均衡价格和数量如何上升。然后，提高所有卖方的成本，显示供给曲线左移，推动价格上涨、数量减少。
Ask students to plot the revealed supply and demand schedules on graph paper. Mark the equilibrium point and label the shifts. This hands-on plotting reinforces the importance of the price mechanism in allocating resources, a core concept in the IGCSE Edexcel syllabus. Students can measure consumer and producer surplus by comparing actual prices with the imposed values and costs.
让学生在图绘图纸上绘制揭示出的供给和需求表。标出均衡点并标注移动情况。这种亲手绘图巩固了价格机制在资源配置中的重要性——这是 IGCSE Edexcel 大纲的核心概念。学生可以通过比较实际价格与设定的价值和成本来衡量消费者剩余和生产者剩余。
5. Experimenting with Price Controls | 价格管制实验
Now impose a price ceiling below the equilibrium price discovered in the previous round. Tell buyers and sellers they cannot trade above this maximum legal price. Run the auction again and observe the result: quantity supplied shrinks, quantity demanded expands, and a shortage appears. Sellers with high costs drop out, and some willing buyers go home empty-handed.
现在施加一个低于上一轮发现的均衡价格的最高限价。告诉买方和卖方他们不能以高于这个法定最高价的价格交易。再次进行拍卖并观察结果：供给量缩小，需求量扩大，短缺出现。高成本卖方退出，一些有意愿的买方空手而归。
Next, lift the ceiling and install a price floor above the equilibrium price. Trading now requires buyers to pay at least the floor price. The outcome: a surplus, with sellers eager to supply more but buyers unwilling to purchase at the inflated price. This mimics agricultural support schemes or minimum wage scenarios. Record the inefficiency: too few or too many trades compared to the free market.
接下来，取消价格上限并安装一个高于均衡价格的最低限价。交易现在要求买方至少支付底价。结果：出现过剩，卖方渴望供给更多，但买方不愿以抬高的价格购买。这模拟了农业支持计划或最低工资情景。记录下无效率之处：与自由市场相比，交易量要么太少要么太多。
6. Public Goods and Free-Rider Problem | 公共物品与搭便车问题
Public goods, such as street lighting or national defence, are non-excludable and non-rival—key concepts for the IGCSE syllabus. To illustrate the free-rider problem, give each student a handful of tokens representing private income. Announce a public project: if the group collectively contributes enough tokens, every participant receives a bonus larger than any individual contribution. However, each student decides privately how much to donate.
公共物品，如路灯或国防，具有非排他性和非竞争性——这是 IGCSE 大纲的关键概念。为了说明搭便车问题，给每位学生一把代表私人收入的代币。宣布一个公共项目：如果小组集体贡献足够多的代币，每位参与者都会获得比任何个人贡献额都大的奖金。然而，每个学生私下决定捐赠多少。
Run several rounds without communication. Typically, contributions start moderate but decline as students realise they can benefit from others’ donations while keeping their own tokens. The total falls short of the target, and the project fails—a clear demonstration of market failure caused by non-excludability. Debrief by linking to taxation, government provision, and the concept of the ‘invisible hand’ failing for public goods.
在没有沟通的情况下进行多轮。通常，贡献额开始时中等，但当学生意识到可以从他人的捐赠中获益且保留自己的代币时，贡献就开始下降。总额达不到目标，项目失败——这是由非排他性导致的市场失灵的清晰演示。总结时与税收、政府供给以及“看不见的手”在公共物品上失灵的概念相联系。
7. The Ultimatum Game: Fairness and Behaviour | 最后通牒博弈：公平与行为
Economics assumes rational self-interest, but experiments reveal that fairness also motivates decisions. In the Ultimatum Game, pair up students: Player A receives a sum of tokens and proposes a split to Player B. If B accepts, both keep their shares; if B rejects, both get nothing. This one-shot interaction tests whether people will sacrifice their own gain to punish unfair offers.
经济学假设理性的私利，但实验揭示公平也会驱动决策。在最后通牒博弈中，将学生两两配对：玩家 A 获得一笔代币并向玩家 B 提议分配。如果 B 接受，两人各得其份；如果 B 拒绝，两人都得不到任何东西。这种一次性互动测试人们是否愿意牺牲自己的收益来惩罚不公平的提议。
Run the game with real tokens and small rewards. Record the proposed splits and acceptances. Typically, offers below about 30% are frequently rejected, even though the responder would be better off accepting anything above zero. This contradicts narrow self-interest and introduces behavioural economics concepts like loss aversion and fairness norms. Discuss implications for wage setting and consumer boycotts, which are relevant to labour and market failure topics.
用真实的代币和小额奖励进行博弈。记录提议的分成和接受情况。通常情况下，低于约 30% 的出价常常被拒绝，即使回应者接受任何高于零的出价都会过得更好。这与狭隘的私利相矛盾，并引进了损失厌恶和公平规范等行为经济学概念。讨论其对工资设定和消费者抵制的意义，这与劳动力和市场失灵主题有关。
8. Production Possibility Frontier Role-Play | 生产可能性边界角色扮演
The production possibility frontier (PPF) illustrates opportunity cost, efficiency, and economic growth—all central to IGCSE Edexcel topic 1.1. Set up a simple economy where students produce two goods, e.g. folded paper planes and friendship bracelets. Give them fixed raw materials (paper, thread) and time. Divide the class into groups, each allocating labour differently; one group may specialise in planes, another in bracelets.
生产可能性边界 (PPF) 解释了机会成本、效率与经济增长——这些都是 IGCSE Edexcel 主题 1.1 的核心。建立一个简单经济，让学生生产两种商品，例如折纸飞机和友谊手链。给他们固定的原材料（纸张、线）和时间。将班级分成小组，每组以不同方式分配劳动；一组可能专门生产飞机，另一组专门生产手链。
After production, count output and plot combinations on a graph. Connect the outermost points to reveal a concave PPF, depicting increasing opportunity cost as resources are not equally suited to both tasks. Then introduce a discovery like a quicker folding technique—representing technological improvement—and watch the PPF shift outward. This tangible experience makes the abstract concept of resource allocation concrete.
生产结束后，统计产出并在图上绘制组合。连接最外侧的点以显示一条凹向原点的 PPF，描绘出随着资源并非同等适合两项任务而递增的机会成本。然后引入一项发现，比如更快折叠技术——代表技术进步——并观察 PPF 向外移动。这种实在的体验使资源分配这一抽象概念变得具体。
9. Analysing Experimental Data | 分析实验数据
Economic experiments generate rich data that you can analyse just like professional researchers. For the auction experiments, calculate the average trading price per round, the standard deviation, and plot a time series to see price convergence. Compare the quantity traded with the predicted equilibrium quantity from your demand and supply schedules. Did the market clear efficiently? If not, identify possible causes such as incomplete information or transaction costs.
经济学实验会产生丰富的数据，你可以像专业研究人员那样进行分析。对于拍卖实验，计算每轮的平均交易价格、标准差，并绘制时间序列图以观察价格收敛。把实际交易量与从你的供需表中预测的均衡数量进行比较。市场是否有效出清？如果没有，找出可能的原因，比如信息不完全或交易成本。
For the public goods game, compute the average contribution rate and the percentage of rounds where the project was fully funded. Graph the decline in contributions over time to illustrate the free-rider dynamic. Use this data to discuss government intervention: if the state had coercive taxation, the project would have succeeded. Link your findings to the concept of market failure and the need for public provision.
对于公共物品游戏，计算平均贡献率和项目完全获得资助的轮数百分比。绘制贡献随时间下降的图表，以说明搭便车动态。利用这些数据讨论政府干预：如果国家有强制征税，项目就会成功。将你的发现与市场失灵概念和公共供给的必要性联系起来。
10. Linking Experiments to Exam Topics | 将实验与考试主题联系
The experiments you perform can be quoted as real-life illustrations in Edexcel IGCSE Economics exam answers. For instance, when explaining how price ceilings cause shortages, you can state: ‘A classroom auction under a binding price ceiling revealed a persistent shortage with several willing buyers unable to purchase at the legal price.’ This adds originality and demonstrates deep understanding to the examiner.
你在实验中进行的实验可以作为 Edexcel IGCSE 经济学考试答案中的现实例证加以引用。例如，在解释价格上限如何导致短缺时，你可以说：“在有约束力的价格上限下进行的课堂拍卖显示，存在持续短缺，若干有意愿的买方无法以法定价格购买。”这增添了原创性，并向考官展示深刻的理解。
Similarly, when discussing public goods, refer to your token-contribution exercise to explain the free-rider problem and the necessity of government intervention. For elasticity, modify the auction by varying the steepness of demand and observe changes in revenue. By systematically recording your experimental outcomes, you build a personal bank of evidence that supports theoretical points across multiple syllabus areas, from basic supply and demand to behavioural economics.
同样，讨论公共物品时，引用你的代币贡献练习来解释搭便车问题和政府干预的必要性。对于弹性，通过改变需求的陡峭程度来修改拍卖，观察收入的变化。通过系统地记录你的实验结果，你建立了一个个人证据库，支持多个大纲领域的理论观点，从基本的供需到行为经济学。
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