Writing Style & the AEJ: Micro Intro Arc (aejmic-writing-style)

When to trigger

• The introduction opens with machinery (the model's notation, an estimator) instead of the question
• A reader cannot state your main result after the first page
• The abstract describes activities ("we study…") rather than the result
• Late-stage polish before submission (do this after the model and proofs settle)

The AEJ: Micro intro arc

A theory-first AEA journal rewards an introduction that makes a broad micro audience see the question and the result fast. The arc:

question / puzzle → model + equilibrium concept (in words) → main result (a proposition, stated in words) → what drives it / which assumption is doing the work → contribution & scope → brief roadmap.

• Open with the economic question, not the model. A non-specialist should grasp what is being asked in the first breath.
• State the result in words on page one — the proposition's content, not its proof. "We show that X, and this happens because Y."
• Name the driving force early (which assumption / mechanism delivers the result) — this is the AEJ: Micro reader's payoff and ties to aejmic-identification.
• Frame the contribution as a result with scope, including what it does not establish.
• The literature delta belongs here in one or two sentences (full treatment in aejmic-literature-positioning), not a survey.

AEA house-style conventions

• Abstract: short and result-bearing; lead with the result, not the activity. (Confirm the current word limit on the AEA author page — volatile; 检索于 2026-06，以官网为准.)
• JEL codes and keywords required.
• Statistical presentation: for any empirical/experimental content, report standard errors / confidence sets, not significance asterisks.
• Notation discipline: define on first use; consistent throughout; avoid clutter.
• Proofs: key proofs self-contained in the paper (main text or appendix), not exiled to supplementary files.
• Single-blind note: AEJ: Micro review is single-blind (the referee sees the author), so the manuscript need not be anonymized — but acknowledgments and self-citations should still read professionally, not promotionally.

Checklist

• [ ] Intro opens with the economic question, not the model/estimator
• [ ] Main result stated in words on page one, with its driving force named
• [ ] Contribution framed as a result with explicit scope ("we do not show…")
• [ ] Abstract leads with the result; JEL codes + keywords present
• [ ] No significance asterisks anywhere; SEs / coverage sets where relevant
• [ ] Notation defined at first use and consistent
• [ ] Self-citations and acknowledgments read professionally (single-blind: no anonymization needed)

Anti-patterns

• Leading the introduction with the model's notation or the estimator (machinery-first)
• An abstract that lists activities ("we develop a model and run an experiment") with no result
• Burying the proposition's content until Section 4
• A literature survey in the introduction instead of a one-sentence delta
• Promotional self-citation ("our influential paper") rather than neutral phrasing
• Significance asterisks in tables

Worked vignette (illustrative)

A draft opens: "We consider a Bayesian game with type space Θ and a sender who commits to a signal π." Rewrite to the arc: "When can a better-informed seller credibly disclose product quality, and when does it pay to stay vague? We model disclosure as a commitment to a signal and show the seller-optimal policy pools high types — vagueness is profitable precisely because…". The question leads, the result is on page one, the driving force (pooling preserves credibility) is named. See ../../resources/worked-examples/01-introduction.md.

Output format

【Intro opens with】question? [Y/N]
【Result on page one】stated in words + driving force named? [Y/N]
【Contribution】result + explicit scope limit? [Y/N]
【Abstract】leads with result; JEL + keywords? [Y/N]
【House style】no asterisks; notation consistent; self-cites professional? [Y/N]
【Next step】aejmic-replication-package (proofs + code) then aejmic-submission

Supplementary resources

• ../../resources/worked-examples/01-introduction.md — before→after theory-paper intro in AEJ: Micro house style