Comparative Government and Politics - Comparative Methods

Question 1

what is the comparative method

Answer 1

the process by which different cases are compared in order to better understand their qualities, and to develop hypotheses, theories, and concepts

Question 2

what is a methodology

Answer 2

the systematic analysis of the methods used in a given field of enquiry. Also used to describe the body of methods used, or the means used to reach a particular set of conclusions

Question 3

what is a unit of analysis

Answer 3

the object of study in comparative politics

Question 4

what is the level of analysis

Answer 4

the level of study in comparative politics, ranging from the macro (political system) level to the micro (individual) level.

Question 5

what is the case study method

Answer 5

a research method involving detailed study of a particular object and the context within which it exists

Question 6

what is the historical method

Answer 6

a research method with multiple cases, focusing on the processes and tracing how they lead to a known outcome

Question 7

what techniques do case studies use

Answer 7

• reading the academic literature
• examining primary and secondary sources
• interviews with participants and other observers in the unit
• direct observation, either as a ‘fly on the wall’ or as a participant

Question 8

what is the qualitative method

Answer 8

a research method based on studying a few cases within their natural setting, with an emphasis on values, opinions, behaviour, and context

Question 9

how many cases are used in the qualitative approach

Answer 9

a limited number

Question 10

what does the qualitative method tend to be

Answer 10

descriptive rather than predictive

Question 11

what is aim of the qualitative method

Answer 11

to understand the interaction of multiple variables

Question 12

what is a most similar system

Answer 12

a research design based on using cases that are as similar as possible, in effect controlling for the similarities and isolating the causes of differences

Question 13

what is a most a different system

Answer 13

a research design based on using cases that are as different as possible, in effect controlling for the differences and isolating the causes of similarities

Question 14

what is a correlation

Answer 14

a relationship between two or more variables or attributes

Question 15

what is the regression line

Answer 15

the line of best fit in a scatter plot, summarising the relationship between two variables

Question 16

what are outliers

Answer 16

the observations furthest away from the value predicted by the regression line

Question 17

what is the historical method

Answer 17

a research method based on studying cases from the past, often with a focus on their development through time

Question 18

what is process tracing

Answer 18

the study of the sequence of events linking a cause to an effect

Question 19

what is path dependence

Answer 19

the idea that the outcome of a political process dpeends on earlier decisions that lead down a particular path

Question 20

what is critical juncture

Answer 20

a turning point which establishes interests, structures, or institutions persisting through time

Question 21

what is sequencing

Answer 21

the idea that the order of events, not merely their occurrence, affects the outcome

Question 22

what is a slow moving cause

Answer 22

an influence which changes slowly but, over a long period dramatically

Question 23

what is counterfactual

Answer 23

a thought experiment speculating on possible outcomes if a particular factor had been absent from a process, or an absent factor had been present

Question 24

what is selection bias

Answer 24

arises when selected cases and variables are unrepresentative of the wider class from which they are drawn

Question 25

what is being generalizable

Answer 25

being able to be accurately applied or extended to situations or circumstances other than those originally studied

Question 26

what is the issue of having too few cases and too many variables when conducting comparison

Answer 26

having more explanatory factors for a given outcome than there are cases available to study

Question 27

what is the issue of selection bias when conducting comparison

Answer 27

the cases selected for study are often an unrepresentative sample, limiting the significance of the findings. The selection may be influenced in particular by survivorship, value, or confirmation bias

Question 28

what is survivorship bias

Answer 28

a form of seleciotn bias that crops up when we study only surviving exampels of politicla types, overlooking past examples

Question 29

what is value bias

Answer 29

allowing assessments, the choice of facts, and conclusions to be impacted by the values of the researcher

Question 30

what is confirmation bias

Answer 30

the tendency to seek out or interpret information that confirms pre-existing beliefs and attitudes, and to ignore information that does not

Question 31

what is globalisation

Answer 31

the process by which the links between people, corporations, and governments in different states become integrated through trade, investment, and technology

Question 32

what did Powell say about comparative politics

Answer 32

'comparison is the methodological core of the scientific study of politics' (Powell et al., 2014)

Question 33

what is the greatest advantage of a single case comparison

Answer 33

it offers an in-depth, real-world understanding of a phenomenon, a clearly defined example that helps to illustrate a wider principle

Question 34

what does Yin (2018) say about case studies

Answer 34

they should be understood in terms of both their scope and their features

Question 35

what is the quality of a representative case study

Answer 35

it is typical of the category

Question 36

what is the quality of a prototypical case study

Answer 36

it is expected to become typical

Question 37

what is the quality of an exemplary case study

Answer 37

it created the category

Question 38

what is the quality of a deviant case study

Answer 38

it is an exception to the rule

Question 39

what is the quality of a critical case study

Answer 39

if it works in one place, it will work anywhere

Question 40

what is an example of a representative case study

Answer 40

coalition government in finland

Question 41

what is an example of a prototypical case study

Answer 41

the advanced use of social media in US election campaign

Question 42

what is an example of an exemplary case study

Answer 42

the British parliament

Question 43

what is an example of a deviant case study

Answer 43

China as large country that is not a federation

Question 44

what is an example of a critical case study

Answer 44

promoting democracy in Afghanistan

Question 45

what is an example of a hypothesis

Answer 45

- the wealthier a country, the more likely it is to sustain a stable democracy - the violent end to a dictatorial regime is more likely to bring chaos than democracy

Question 46

what does Lipset (1990) say about the most similar system

Answer 46

'the more similar the units being compared, the more possible it should be to isolate the factors responsible for differences between them'

Question 47

what is another name for the quantitative method

Answer 47

large N cases

Question 48

what does the historical method combine

Answer 48

both qualitative and quantitative approaches to research, helping to examine the robustness of findings across distinct time periods