Designing Case Studies: Explanatory Approaches in Small-N Research

281 Pages·2012·1.249 MB·English

by  Joachim Blatter, Markus Haverland (auth.)

Designing Case Studies
ResearchMethodsSeries
General Editors: Bernhard Kittel, Professor of Social Science Methodology,
Department of Social Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg,
Germany, and Benoît Rihoux, Professor of Political Science, Université
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Titlesinclude:
JoachimBlatterandMarkusHaverland
DESIGNINGCASESTUDIES
ExplanatoryApproachesinSmall-NResearch
AlexanderBogner,BeateLittig,andWolfgangMenz(editors)
INTERVIEWINGEXPERTS
BernhardKittel,WolfgangJ.Luhan,andRebeccaB.Morton(editors)
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APluralistGuide
LaneKenworthyandAlexanderHicks(editors)
METHODANDSUBSTANCEINMACROCOMPARATIVEANALYSIS
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Designing Case Studies
Explanatory Approaches in Small-N
Research
Joachim Blatter
ProfessorofPoliticalScience,DepartmentofHumanitiesandSocialSciences,
UniversityofLucerne,Switzerland
and
Markus Haverland
ProfessorofPoliticalScience,DepartmentofPublicAdministration,
ErasmusUniversityRotterdam,TheNetherlands
©JoachimBlatterandMarkusHaverland2012
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Blatter,Joachim,1966–
Designingcasestudies:explanatoryapproachesinsmall-nresearch/
JoachimBlatter,MarkusHaverland.
pages cm.—(Researchmethodsseries)
Includesbibliographicalreferences.
1. Politicalscience—Research—Methodology. 2. Socialsciences—
Research—Methodology. 3. Casemethod. I. Haverland,M.(Markus)
II. Title.
JA86.B552012
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21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12
We dedicate this book to
Lisa
as well as to
Judith, Anou, and Maud
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
ListofFiguresandTables xiii
ListofAbbreviations xv
PrefaceandAcknowledgements xvi
1 RelevanceandRefinementsofCaseStudies 1
1.1 Casestudiesascornerstonesfortheoriesand
researchprograms 2
1.2 Thecaseforcasestudyresearch 5
1.2.1 Thegrowingrelevanceoftiming,cognition,
andinterdependence 5
1.2.2 Perforatedboundariesinsocialrealityand
thesocialsciences 6
1.2.3 Buildingbridgesbetweenparadigmatic
camps 7
1.3 Thecaseforanon-fundamentalistandpluralist
epistemology 9
1.3.1 Empiricism/PositivismandCritical
Rationalism 9
1.3.2 Constructivism/Conventionalismand
CriticalTheory 10
1.3.3 Pragmatism/NaturalismandCriticalRealism 12
1.3.4 Theepistemological‘middleground’:
Anti-fundamentalistandpluralistic 13
1.4 Casestudymethodology:Abriefhistoryandrecent
contributions 15
1.5 Casestudies:Towardagenericand
multidimensionaldefinition 18
1.6 Observations:Towardanadequateunderstandingof
casestudies 20
1.7 Threeapproachestocasestudyresearch:
Anoverview 23
1.7.1 Researchgoalsandquestions 23
1.7.2 Caseandtheoryselection 24
vii
viii Contents
1.7.3 Datagenerationanddataanalysis 26
1.7.4 Generalization 31
2 Co-VariationalAnalysis 33
2.1 Researchgoalsandresearchquestions 35
2.2 Ontologicalandepistemologicalfoundationsand
affinities 36
2.2.1 Experimentaltemplateandcounterfactual
conceptofcausation 37
2.2.2 Experimentalcontrolversuscontrolin
observationalstudies 38
2.2.3 Probabilisticversusdeterministiccausality 38
2.2.4 Autonomousversusconfigurational
causality 41
2.3 Selectingcases 41
2.3.1 Criteriaforcaseselection 42
2.3.2 Modesofcomparison 44
2.3.3 Cross-sectionalcomparison 45
2.3.4 Intertemporalcomparison 46
2.3.5 Cross-sectional–intertemporal
comparison 47
2.3.6 Counterfactualcomparison 48
2.3.7 Excursus:Themethodofagreementandthe
mostdifferentsystemsdesign 49
2.4 Thefunctionsofpriorknowledgeandtheory 50
2.4.1 Specifyingthemainindependentand
dependentvariable 51
2.4.2 Substantiatingtheresearchhypothesis 52
2.4.3 Identifyingcontrolvariables 54
2.5 Drawingcausalinferencesforthecasesunder
investigation 54
2.5.1 Datasetresultsandconclusions 55
2.5.2 Examples 58
2.5.3 Concludingremarks 61
2.6 Measurementanddatacollection 63
2.6.1 Conceptualizationandmeasurementin
large-Nversussmall-Nresearch 63
2.6.2 Determinationofclassificationsandcut-off
points 65
2.6.3 Replicabilityandmeasurementerror 67
2.6.4 Datatriangulation 68
Contents ix
2.7 Directionofgeneralization 68
2.8 Presentingfindingsandconclusions 70
2.9 Exampleofbestpractice:Zangl’sJudicalization
Matters! 71
2.10 Summaryandconclusions 75
2.11 Appendix:Howtomakecounterfactualanalysis
morecompelling 76
3 Causal-ProcessTracing 79
3.1 Researchgoalsandresearchquestions 84
3.1.1 Startingpointsandresearchgoals 84
3.1.2 Researchgoalsandfunctionsof
causal-processtracing 87
3.1.3 Researchquestions 88
3.2 Ontologicalandepistemologicalfoundations 90
3.2.1 Contingency 91
3.2.2 Causalconditionsandconfigurations 92
3.2.3 Additiveandinteractiveconfigurations 93
3.2.4 Causalconjunctionsandcausalchains 94
3.2.5 Socialandcausalmechanisms 95
3.2.6 Summary 97
3.2.7 Appendix:Contexts 98
3.3 Selectingcases 99
3.3.1 Misleadingadviceandtrade-offs 99
3.3.2 Generalcriteriaforselectingcases 102
3.3.3 Specificcriteriaforselectingcasesaccording
todifferentresearchgoals 102
3.4 Collectingempiricalinformation 105
3.5 Drawingcausalinferencesforthecase(s)under
investigation 106
3.5.1 Theaddedvalueofcausal-process
observations 107
3.5.2 Majorfeaturesofcausal-processtracing 109
3.5.3 EmpiricalfundamentsofCPT:Storylines,
smokingguns,andconfessions 110
3.5.4 LogicalfoundationsofCPTI:Causalchains 119
3.5.5 LogicalfoundationsofCPTII:Process
dynamics 121
3.6 Examples 123
3.6.1 Brady’sData-SetObservationsversus
Causal-ProcessObservations 124