Replication & Data Policy (geb-replication-and-data-policy)

When to trigger

• You have experimental data, simulation code, or solver inputs and are unsure what GEB requires
• You assumed GEB has a mandatory data archive (it does not) and are budgeting effort accordingly
• You want to make a theory paper's numerical examples reproducible
• An accepted-stage checklist is being assembled

The GEB data policy — encouraged, not required

This is a meaningful distinction for a journal that publishes experimental work: GEB does not operate a mandatory data/code replication archive comparable to the AEA journals (AEJ/AER), Econometrica, or the JAE Data Archive. GEB follows Elsevier's "encourages and enables" research-data stance (Option C): authors are invited to deposit data and code in a repository (e.g., Mendeley Data, free and open access), to include a data-availability statement, or to publish a Data Brief — but deposit is not a condition of publication. Do not assume a required openICPSR-style archive; verify the current wording on the Guide for Authors (some details here are 待核实 — drawn from secondary sources).

Even though it is optional, sharing well is good practice and pre-empts referee doubts about your experiment or computation.

What to prepare (voluntarily, but recommended)

For experimental papers

• Raw and cleaned data plus the analysis scripts that produce every table and figure.
• Experiment code (oTree / z-Tree) and the instructions shown to subjects.
• A README describing variables, sessions, treatments, and how to run the pipeline.
• An IRB / ethics note where applicable.

For theory papers with computation

• The scripts and solver inputs (e.g., Gambit files, nashpy/Python notebooks) that generate every numerical example, figure, and counterexample.
• Pinned versions and reported seeds so examples regenerate deterministically.
• A short README mapping each script to the corresponding result in the paper.

Statement and deposit

• Add a data-availability statement even when depositing voluntarily.
• Deposit on a stable repository (Mendeley Data, Zenodo, or OSF) and cite it.
• Disclose any generative-AI use in the dedicated declaration section (separate from data policy, but part of the same transparency package).

Anti-patterns

• Assuming GEB will block publication without a deposited archive (it will not)
• ...but also shipping an experiment with no reproducible analysis path
• Numerical examples with no seeds or pinned versions, so referees cannot regenerate them
• A data file with no README or variable documentation
• Confusing GEB's optional policy with the mandatory archives of AER/Econometrica/JAE

Reproducibility pass for Games and Economic Behavior

Use this as a second-pass capability check. First lock the primitives, equilibrium concept, comparative statics, and proof or experiment boundary; then test whether the manuscript addresses game theorists who ask what the model teaches beyond a clever example.

• Primary move: Name data, code, environment, disclosure limits, and archive/deposit route; unresolved proprietary or ethics barriers must be explicit.
• Decision ledger: return claim / evidence / blocker / next edit rows so the next pass can patch the manuscript directly.
• Neighbor test: compare against JET for theory abstraction, Theoretical Economics for compact theory contribution, Experimental Economics for experiment-first designs; if the neighboring outlet has the stronger audience claim, recommend re-routing before polishing.
• Verification floor: before submission-ready advice, re-open resources/official-source-map.md for volatile rules and name the one unresolved fact that could change the recommendation.

Output format

【Paper type】experimental / computational-theory / pure-theory
【GEB requirement】sharing encouraged, NOT mandatory (verify wording)
【Prepared】data + code + README + (exp) instructions/IRB? [Y/N each]
【Reproducible computation】seeds + pinned versions + run_all? [Y/N / NA]
【Deposit plan】Mendeley Data / Zenodo / OSF + availability statement? [Y/N]
【Next step】geb-review-process or geb-submission