system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
How do you 'Choose a Model?'

I'm taking an economics course where we're to write an empirical paper. 

So as an example, I'm thinking about studying the effects of the ASEAN free trade agreement on the 'standards of living' on the general population. I know some of the data I want: GDP/capita pre&post agreement, unemployment rates pre&post agreement, gini coefficients p&p, and purchasing parity: how much could a unit of currency purchase pre& post agreement.

But how do social scientists know where to go? What do I do with all this data? If I want to look at the changes in Malaysia's GDP/capita over through 20 years, do I compare that against a neighboring non-ASEAN country? Do I compare changes between other ASEAN countries? Should I just feed my data through a pre-existing model (like the Solow model)? I'm lost where to go from here. Any help is appreciated.
gpt
Maybe this isn't saying much, but generally you want it to be:

* parsimonious (just the main variables, keep the frilly crap to a minimum)

* supported by theory (or better yet, have rival models that are supported by different theories, that way you'll be able to chose which one tells the best story)

* answering the main questions you want to look at (every model is actually telling a story... so...what story do you intend to tell)

* econometrically sound. This part can get very detailed if you let it. make sure to quote your textbook as faithfully as possible.