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Member rate £492.50
Non-Member rate £985.00
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*If you attended our Methods School in Summer/Winter 2024.
Monday 30 July - Friday 3 August and Monday 6 August - Friday 10 August
14:00-15:30 / 16:00-17:30
This course introduces participants to set-theoretic methods and their application in the social sciences with a focus on Qualitative Comparative Analysis. The introductory course is complemented by an advanced course that is taught at the ECPR Winter School in Bamberg. The course starts out by familiarizing students with the basic concepts of the underlying methodological perspective, among them the central notions of necessity and sufficiency, formal logic and Boolean algebra. From there, we move to the logic and analysis of truth tables and discuss the most important problems that emerge when this analytical tool is used for exploring social science data. Right from the beginning, students will be exposed to performing set-theoretic analyses with the relevant R software packages. When discussing set-theoretic methods, in-class debates will engage on broad, general comparative social research issues, such as case selection principles, concept formation, questions of data aggregation and the treatment of causally relevant notions of time. Examples are drawn from published applications in the social sciences. Participants are encouraged to bring their own raw data for in-class exercises and assignments, if available.
Tasks for ECTS Credits
The task(s) to be assessed by the instructor and required to acquire credits are the following:
Nena (Ioana-Elena) Oana is a Research Fellow at the European University Institute, Florence, where she is currently working on developing semi-automated solutions for protest event analysis in the framework of the SOLID project.
Nena is the main developer of the R package SetMethods and has extensive experience in teaching QCA using R at various international methods schools and universities (ECPR Methods Schools, Lund University, University of Helsinki, EUI, etc).
She has also co-authored, with Carsten Q. Schneider and Eva Thomann, the book Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) using R: A Beginner's Guide, forthcoming with Cambridge University Press.
Besides research methodology, Nena's main research interests include political participation and representation, political behaviour, and political psychology.
Carsten Q. Schneider is Professor of Political Science at Central European University Budapest.
His research focuses on regime transitions, autocratic regimes, the qualities of democracies, and the link between social and political inequalities. He also works in the field of comparative methodology, especially on set-theoretic methods.
Carsten has published in leading political science journals, and he is the author three books, among them Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences (Cambridge University Press, 2012).
The book Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) using R: A Gentle Introduction, co-authored with Ioana-Elena Oana and Eva Thomann, appeared in 2021 with Cambridge University Press and his book Set-Theoretic Multi-Method Research: A Guide to Combining QCA and Case Studies is forthcoming with the same publisher.
The central aim of week 1 (I. E. Oana) is to familiarize the participants with the formal logic of set-theoretic methods and to introduce QCA as an approach, its main assumptions, the technical environment (software) and the standard procedures and operations. Particular emphasis is put on a thorough understanding of the notions of necessity and sufficiency, as they are the nuts and bolts of QCA that set it apart from the majority of other available cross-case comparative techniques.
The purpose of week 2 (C.Q. Schneider) is fourfold: (1) to re-visit the core points of QCA addressed in week 1 (calibration, tests of necessity and sufficiency, truth tables, parameters of fit); (2) to elaborate on further issues that arise when neat formal logical tools and concepts, such as necessity, sufficiency, and truth tables, are applied to social science data (mainly the issues of limited diversity and the challenge to make good counterfactuals on so-called logical remainders); (3) to get better acquainted with the standards of good practice, both in its fundamental aspects and in using the relevant software programmes; (4) to discuss general methodological issues such as robustness and theory evaluation from a set-theoretic point of view.
Throughout the course, we will analyse fake and real data in the computer lab, using the R software environment and its QCA package. In addition to prepared datasets, which will be made available, participants are encouraged to bring their own raw data (even if this data is still tentative), which can be used for lab exercises and project work. Instructors and teaching assistants will be available for individual appointments with course participants to discuss research projects, questions regarding the design of a QCA study, the “formatting” of raw data to be compatible with QCA, and similar issues.
Note from the Academic Convenors to prospective participants: by registering to this course, you certify that you possess the prerequisite knowledge that is requested to be able to follow this course. The instructor will not teach again these prerequisite items. If you doubt whether you possess that knowledge to a sufficient extent, we suggest you contact the instructor before you proceed to your registration.
Participants are not required to have any prior knowledge of QCA or the R software environment and the package relevant for set-theoretic methods. However, they would profit from prior empirical-comparative training and we strongly encourage advance familiarization with the basic principles of the method by reading the recommended literature as specified in the reading list. A previous introduction to the basic functions of R and RStudio will be useful to start working with the software from day 1.
Day | Topic | Details |
---|---|---|
Week 1: Goals | - Address fundamental issues in comparative research - Introduce set-theoretic principles and formal logic - Become familiar with the terminology and principles of QCA - Practice the use of the QCA software package for the R environment | |
Week 2: Goals | - Deepen the skills and knowledge on QCA - Apply QCA to real data and learn how to address typical challenges of applied QCA - Become further acquainted with standards of good practice - Explore the limitations and pitfalls of set-theoretic methods | |
10 | Deepening of Knowledge and Set-Theoretic Multi-Method Research (60’) - Post-QCA case selection principles and practices - Conclusion/debriefing of course |
Exercises (120’)
|
9 | Advanced Standard Analysis (60’) - From data matrix to truth table - From truth table to solution formula |
Exercises (120’)
|
1 | Course Introduction (120’) - Detailed course overview - Set-theoretic methods - Causal complexity (Introduction) - Rationale for applying QCA - Empirical demonstration |
Introduction (60’)
|
2 | Set Theory (90’) - Methodological foundations: set theory, Boolean and fuzzy algebra, formal logic - Set operations and set relations |
Exercises (90’)
|
3 | Causal Complexity and Calibration (90’) - Causal complexity - Measurement and calibration - Calibration techniques - Differences in calibration and their consequences |
Exercises (90’)
|
4 | Truth Table Analysis (90’) - From data matrix to truth table - Analyzing truth tables - Quine-McCluskey Algorithm |
Exercises (90’)
|
5 | Parameters of Fit (90’) - Consistency and coverage measures for necessary and sufficient conditions - Issues related to the parameters of fit |
Exercises (90’)
|
6 | Recap of Week 1 and Alternative Parameters of Fit (120’) - Calibration - Set relations - Truth Table analysis - Parameters of Fit - Skewed set membership scores |
Exercises (60’)
|
7 | Limited Diversity I (90’) - Origins of remainders - Types of remainders - Types of assumptions on remainders - The Standard Analysis |
Exercises (90’)
|
8 | Limited Diversity II (90’) - Untenable versus tenable assumptions - Enhanced Standard Analysis |
Exercises (90’)
|
Day | Readings |
---|---|
General note |
The mandatory reading for this course is: Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Below, we specify for each day which chapter(s) from this book are to be read and which additional optional literature students may want to consult (* compulsory text) |
1 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 1-20. |
2 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 21-31; 42-90. Goertz, Gary and James Mahoney (2012). A Tale of Two Cultures: Qualitative and Quantitative Research in the Social Sciences. Princeton: Princeton University Press, chapter 2. Ragin, Charles C. (1987). The Comparative Method. Moving Beyond Qualitative and Quantitative Strategies. Berkeley: University of California Press, chapter 6. |
3 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 32-41, 76-90. Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, chapters 4 & 5. Rohlfing, Ingo (2012). Case Studies and Causal Inference: An Integrative Framework. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, chapter 2. |
4 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 91-115. Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press chapter 7. |
5 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 119-150. Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, chapter 3. Thomann, E. and M. Maggetti (2017). Designing research with Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA): Approaches, challenges, and tools, Sociological Methods and Research |
6 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, chapter 9.2. Goertz, Gary (2006). “Assessing the Trivialness, Relevance, and Relative Importance of Necessary or Sufficient Conditions in Social Science.” Studies in Comparative International Development 41(2): 88-109. Haesebrouck, T. (2015). “Pitfalls in QCA’s Consistency Measure”, Journal of Comparative Politics 2:65-80. |
7 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, chapter 6. Ragin, Charles C. (1987). The Comparative Method. Moving Beyond Qualitative and Quantitative Strategies. Berkeley: University of California Press, chapter 7. Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, chapters 8 & 9. |
8 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, chapter 8. Emmenegger, Patrick (2012). “How Good Are Your Counterfactuals? Assessing Quantitative Macro-Comparative Welfare State Research.” Journal of European Social Policy, 21 (4): 365-80. |
9 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, chapter 7. Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, chapter 9. |
10 |
*Schneider, Carsten Q. and Ingo Rohlfing (2013). “Set-Theoretic Methods and Process Tracing in Multi-Method Research: Principles of Case Selection after QCA.” Sociological Methods and Research, DOI: 10.1177/0049124113481341. *Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, chapters 11.1 and conclusion. Rohlfing, Ingo and Carsten Q. Schneider (2013) “Combining QCA With Process Tracing in Analyses of Necessity.” Political Research Quarterly 66(1): 220–35. |
R, RStudio, packages “QCA”, “SetMethods” and all their dependencies.
Participants are required to bring their own laptop.
a) Mandatory reading
Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2012). Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: A Guide to Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
b) Recommended books
Goertz, Gary and James Mahoney (2012). A Tale of Two Cultures: Qualitative and Quantitative Research in the Social Sciences. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Rihoux, Benoît and Charles C. Ragin, eds. (2009). Configurational Comparative Methods. Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and Related Techniques. Thousand Oaks and London: Sage.
Ragin, Charles C. (1987). The Comparative Method: Moving Beyond Quantitative and Qualitative Strategies. Berkeley: University of Berkeley Press.
Ragin, Charles C. (2000). Fuzzy-Set Social Science. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Ragin, Charles C. (2008). Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
c) Further literature
NB: This list is necessarily selective. Further references are provided during the lecture sessions.
Baumgartner, Michael (2008). “Uncovering Deterministic Causal Structures: A Boolean Approach.” Synthese 170(1): 71-96.
Baumgartner, Michael (2009). “Inferring Causal Complexity.” Sociological Methods & Research 38 (1): 71-101.
Braumoeller, Bear F. (2003). “Causal Complexity and the Study of Politics.” Political Analysis 11 (3): 209-33.
Goertz, Gary and Harvey Starr (2003). Necessary Conditions: Theory, Methodology, and Applications. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.
Goertz, Gary (2006). Social Science Concepts: A User’s Guide. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Greckhamer, Thomas, Vilmos Misangyi and Peer Fiss (2013). “The Two QCAs: From A Small-N To A Large-N Set Theoretic Approach.” In: Configurational Theory and Methods in Organizational Research, ed. Peer Fiss, Bart Cambré and Axel Marx. Bingley: Emerald Group, 49-75.
Hino, Airo (2009). “Time-Series QCA.” Sociological Theory and Methods, 24 (2): 247-265.
Mahoney, James, Erin Kimball, and Kendra L. Koivu (2009). “The Logic of Historical Explanation in the Social Sciences.” Comparative Political Studies 42 (1): 114-46.
Rihoux, Benoît and Axel Marx (2013). “QCA, 25 Years after ‘The Comparative Method’: Mapping, Challenges, and Innovations: Mini-Symposium.” Political Research Quarterly, 66 (1): 167-235.
Rohlfing, Ingo (2012). Case Studies and Causal Inference: An Integrative Framework. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2007). Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) und Fuzzy Sets. Ein Lehrbuch für Anwender und jene, die es werden wollen. Opladen & Farmington Hills: Barbara Budrich. [for German speakers]
Schneider, Carsten Q. and Claudius Wagemann (2006). “Reducing Complexity in Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA): Remote and Proximate Factors and the Consolidation of Democracy.” European Journal of Political Research 45 (5): 751-86.
Smithson, Michael and Jay Verkuilen (2006). Fuzzy Set Theory: Applications in the Social Sciences. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Thiem, Alrik (2013). “Clearly Crisp, and Not Fuzzy: A Reassessment of the (Putative) Pitfalls of Multi-Value QCA.” Field Methods. 25(2): 197-207.
Thiem, Alrik and Adrian Duşa (2013). Qualitative Comparative Analysis with R: A User’s Guide. New York: Springer.
Thiem, A. and Adrian Duşa (2013). “Boolean Minimization in Social Science Research: A Review of Current Software for Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA).” Social Science Computer Review 31(4): 505–21.
Vink, Maarten P., and Olaf van Vliet. (2009). “Not Quite Crisp, Not Yet Fuzzy? Assessing the Potentials and Pitfalls of Multi-Value QCA.” Field Methods 21(3): 265–89.
Wagemann, Claudius and Carsten Q. Schneider (2010). “Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and Fuzzy-Sets: Agenda for a Research Approach and a Data Analysis Technique.” Comparative Sociology 9 (3): 376-96.
d) Examples of empirical studies (some used during course)
Bara, C. (2014). “Incentives and opportunities A complexity-oriented explanation of violent ethnic conflict”, Journal of Peace Research 51(6): 696-710.
Emmenegger, P. (2011) “Job-security regulations in Western democracies”, European Journal of Political Research 50: 336-364.
Hinterleitner, M., Sager, F. and E. Thomann (2016). “The Politics of External Approval: Explaining the IMF’s Evaluation of Austerity Programs”, European Journal of Political Research 55(3): 549–567.
Sager, F. and E. Thomann (2016). “Multiple streams in member state implementation: politics, problem construction and policy paths in Swiss asylum policy”, Journal of Public Policy.
Schneider, C. Q. and Makszin, K. (2014). “Forms of Welfare Capitalism and Education-Based Participatory Inequality”, Socio-Economic Review 12(2):437– 462.
Schneider, M. R., Schulze-Bentrop, C., Paunescu, M. (2010) “Mapping the institutional capital of high-tech firms: A fuzzy-set analysis of capitalist variety and export performance”, Journal of International Business Studies 41:246-266.
Introduction to R
Comparative Research Design
Advanced Topics in Set-Theoretic Methods and QCA
Advanced Multi-Method Research
Case Study Research – Method and Practice
Process Tracing Methodology I and II