Significant that economics is not a laboratory science

Question

Why is it significant that economics is not a laboratory science?  What problems may be evolved in deriving and applying economic principles?

Answer 1

Because the world of reality is cluttered with innumerable interrelated facts, researchers must be highly selective in gathering information.  They must determine which facts are relevant to the problem under consideration.  But even when this sorting process is complete, the relevant information may at first seem random and unrelated.

The economist seeks principles—generalizations about the way individuals and institutions behave.  Deriving principles is called theoretical economics or economic analysis.  The role of economic theorizing or economic analysis is to systematically arrange facts, interpret them, and generalize from them.