12 Questions
What is definition inference in the context of political science research?
The process of using known facts to make educated guesses about unknown facts
What is the primary focus of quantitative research in political science?
Understanding the big picture of how one variable affects another
What is the limitation of quantitative research in explaining the relationship between two variables?
It does not provide information about individual cases
What is the primary goal of qualitative research in political science?
To provide a detailed understanding of a specific political event or group of cases
What is the relationship between quantitative and qualitative research in political science?
Quantitative research provides the overall framework, while qualitative research provides the details
What is an example of a research question that would be suited to qualitative research?
Why did Brazil experience economic growth but a decrease in democracy?
What is the primary aim of interpretative or critical research?
To create meaning and establish power relationships
What is the main difference between quantitative and qualitative research?
The logics of inference used to draw conclusions
What is the primary goal of cross-case comparison in qualitative research?
To identify the necessary and sufficient conditions for an outcome
What is the main goal of within-case analysis in qualitative research?
To identify the causal mechanisms linking an independent variable to an outcome
What is the primary goal of Theda Skocpol's research in 'States and Social Revolutions'?
To identify the similarities between social revolutions in different countries
What is the primary goal of Robert Putnam's research in 'Making Democracy Work'?
To identify the similarities between successful and failed democratic regional governments in Italy
Study Notes
Qualitative Methods
- Definition of inference: using known facts to learn about unknown facts, making educated guesses about unobservable facts.
- In qualitative research, researchers make inferences based on available information to understand a political event or phenomenon.
Quantitative Research
- Focuses on average effects across many cases, measuring correlations between variables using regression analysis.
- Quantitative research provides a big picture view, but lacks insight into individual cases, and doesn't explain why variables are correlated.
- Provides realistic and empirical results, but may not apply to individual cases.
Qualitative Research (Positivist Area)
- Focuses on a single case or a group of cases, aiming to explain individual cases and their unique characteristics.
- Uses country-case studies to explain correlations and identify causal relationships, such as why economic growth is correlated with democracy in developing countries.
- Aims to create generalizable explanations that can be applied to similar cases.
Qualitative Research (Interpretative or Critical)
- Focuses on creating meaning and understanding through interpretation, often critiquing the use of power and establishing new realities.
- Examples include post-colonialism, feminism, and humanities research.
Logics of Inference
- Inference: moving from observed to non-observed data to explain the non-observed.
- Quantitative research: uses mainstream statistics and experimental research to identify average effects of variables.
- Qualitative research: uses cross-case comparison and within-case analysis to identify causal mechanisms and explanations.
Cross-Case Comparison
- Identifies combinations of conditions that explain the presence of an outcome, and compares these conditions across cases.
- Inference: similarities in X should explain Y if two very different cases have the same outcome, and differences in X should explain Y if two very similar cases have different outcomes.
Within-Case Analysis
- Identifies causal mechanisms linking X to Y in a single case, and explains why X is correlated with Y in that case.
- Inference: if the observed data matches the expected data, then the explanation is likely correct.
Research Question
- Example: Why did social revolutions occur in cases as dissimilar as 18th-century France, interwar Russia, and post-World War II China?
- Theda Skocpol's research: identified three variables that explain social revolutions in these countries: state capacity, peasant uprisings, and revolutionary elites.
- Example: Making Democracy Work, Putnam: why did democratic regional governments fail in some places in Italy and succeed in others?
Learn about the differences between qualitative and quantitative research methods. Understand how qualitative research involves inferences and educated guesses based on available information, while quantitative research averages effects across multiple cases.
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