Process Tracing & Causal Mechanisms Flashcards
What is process tracing?
A method for tracing causal mechanisms using detailed, within-case empirical analysis.
What are causal mechanisms?
The process between cause and effect, analytically distinct from the cause itself.
What are the three components of process tracing?
- What we trace: causal mechanisms.
- Tracing causal mechanisms by observing empirical fingerprints or traces.
- Generalization.
What are some things that causal mechanisms are not?
- A sheer sequence of events (descriptive narrative) with little causal meaning.
- Intervening variables.
What is the problem with treating mechanisms as intervening variables?
- It lacks temporal meaning.
- It avoids specifying how causality is produced.
What are the two versions of causal mechanisms?
- Minimalist version: Focuses on whether the proposed mechanism makes sense by searching for diagnostic evidence (fingerprints).
- Maximalist version: Provides more detail about the process, including entities, activities, and the holistic nature of the mechanism.
What is within-case analysis in process tracing?
Detective work that involves observing the manifestations of the process’s parts (the mechanism’s fingerprints) within the case(s).
How do you perform within-case analysis?
- Immerse yourself in the theory.
- Ask: What would it look like if the hypothesized mechanism is correct? What would it look like if it’s wrong?
- Answer these questions for each part of the mechanism.
How can you generalise findings from process tracing?
- Bring other cases to test whether the mechanism works in similar cases.
- Reflect on the population of cases to which the findings may apply (consider context, causal heterogeneity, and mechanistic heterogeneity).
What is the added value of process tracing?
- Scrutinizable logic.
- Illuminates contextual conditions.
- Falsifiability.
How do the authors address the concern about narrow scope in process tracing?
They argue that the propositions provide detailed, contextualized knowledge about how things work in the real world
What is a common concern about process tracing?
Whether the generated propositions will have narrow scope and limited value for knowledge accumulation.
What are the empirical implications of a theoretical mechanism?
They help test whether the mechanism is present in the selected case and if it works as theorized
How do you test the empirical implications of a mechanism?
- Define the expected empirical implications.
- Gather data from the case using diverse techniques to find the mechanism’s fingerprints.
- Show or characterise the outcome and cause.
What are some examples of data sources used in process tracing?
- Quantitative data from secondary sources.
- Qualitative data from primary and secondary sources, including interviews, archival research, and official documents.
How can you test the generalisability of a mechanism beyond the typical case?
- Test the mechanism in cases with different characteristics.
- Discuss cases likely beyond the scope of the findings.
