Political Science Research Methods

Tables, Figures, and Features Preface About the Authors Chapter 1 * Introduction Research on Income Inequality Politics and the Gender Gap The Case of Italian (Non) Tax Compliance Protests and Repression in New Democracies The Observer Effect in International Politics: Evidence from a Natural Experiment Conclusion Terms Introduced Chapter 2 * The Empirical Approach to Political Science Elements of Empiricism The Importance of Theory A Brief Overview of the Empirical Research Process Reactions to the Empirical Approach: Practical Objections Competing Points of View Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 3 * Beginning the Research Process: Identifying a Research Topic, Developing Research Questions, and Reviewing the Literature Specifying the Research Question Sources of Ideas for Research Topics Why Conduct a Literature Review? Collecting Sources for a Literature Review Writing a Literature Review Anatomy of a Literature Review Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 4 * The Building Blocks of Social Scientific Research: Hypotheses, Concepts, Variables, and Measurement Proposing Explanations Formulating Hypotheses Defining Concepts Devising Measurement Strategies The Accuracy of Measurements The Precision of Measurements Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 5 * Sampling The Basics of Sampling How Do We Use a Sample to Learn About a Population? Sampling Methods Types of Samples Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 6 * Research Design: Establishing Causation Verifying Causal Assertions Qualitative and Quantitative Methods and Analysis: Causes-of-Effects and Effects-of-Causes Approaches Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 7 * Qualitative Research: Case Study Designs Case Study Methods Case Study Types Using Cases to Explore Causal Mechanisms: Process Tracing Generalizing from Cases Studies Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 8 * Making Empirical Observations: Qualitative Analysis Types of Data and Collection Techniques Data Collection in Qualitative Research Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 9 * Quantitative Research Designs Randomized Experimental Designs Natural Experiments Nonrandomized Designs: Quasi-Experiments Observational Studies Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 10 * Quantitative Methods The Wide Variety of Quantitative Projects Sources of Data for Quantitative Studies Data Management Ethical Concerns with Quantitative Methods Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 11 * Making Sense of Data: First Steps The Data Matrix Descriptive Statistics Graphs for Presentation and Exploration Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 12 * Testing Relationships The Normal Distribution and z Scores Confidence Intervals Hypothesis Testing Testing a Relationship with Two Samples Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 13 * Analyzing Relationships for Categorical Data The Basics of Identifying and Measuring Relationships Table Summaries of Categorical Variable Associations Measuring Strength of Relationships in Tables Measures of Association: Statistics for Reporting the Strength of Relationships in Tables Chi Square Test for Independence Multivariate Analysis of Categorical Data Analysis of Variance: Analyzing the Difference between Means for More Than Two Means Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 14 * Regression Logic of Regression Minimizing the Sum of the Squared Error The Linear Regression Model Maximum Likelihood Models for Dichotomous Dependent Variables Conclusion Terms Introduced Suggested Readings Chapter 15 * The Research Report: An Annotated Example Annotated Research Report Example Appendixes Appendix A: Normal Curve Tail Probabilities Appendix B: Critical Values from t Distribution Appendix C: Chi-Squared Distribution Values for Various Right-Tail Probabilities Appendix D: F Distribution Glossary Index