II. Concepts and Theories in Political Science

1. A. Concept Formation (September 14, 16) • 1. Frankfort-Nachmias& Nachmias (Chapter 2 – Conceptual Foundations of Research) • 2. Gerring(Chapters 3-4) • Application • 1. David Collier and Steven Levitsky. 1997. “Democracy with Adjectives: Conceptual Innovation in Comparative Research.”World Politics, Vol. 49, No. 3 (Apr., 1997), pp. 430-451. • B. Theory Construction (September 21, 23) • 1. Gerring (Chapters 5-7) • 2. King, Keohane and Verba (Chapters 2-3) • Applications • 1. ZeevMaoz; Bruce Russett, “Normative and Structural Causes of Democratic Peace, 1946-1986.” The American Political Science Review, Vol. 87, No. 3. (Sep., 1993), pp. 624-638. (JSTOR) • 2. Zilberand Niven. 1995.“Black’ versus ‘African-American’: Are Whites’ Political Attitudes Influenced by the Choice of Racial Labels?”Social Science Quarterly 76: 655-664. • 3. William H. Riker; Peter C. Ordeshook, “A Theory of the Calculus of Voting.”The American Political Science Review, Vol. 62, No. 1. (Mar., 1968), pp. 25-42. II. Concepts and Theories in Political Science

2. Concepts • Definitions • an abstraction; a representation of an object, one of that object’s properties, or a natural/behavioral phenomenon (F-N&N) • A general idea applicable to particular instances or examples of behavior (Gray et al.)

3. Concepts • Definitions • an abstraction; a representation of an object, one of that object’s properties, or a natural/behavioral phenomenon (F-N&N) • A general idea applicable to particular instances or examples of behavior (Gray et al.)

4. Concepts • Functions of Concepts • communication • allow classification and generalization • *components of theories*

5. Conceptual vs. Operational Definitions • Conceptual Definitions • define concepts using other concepts, derived or primitive terms • must be clear • May still be abstract and may not be useful for empirical observation • occur in the context of theoretical discussion

6. Gerring (p. 38) • “Large-order concepts comprise the scaffolding on which we hang observables. Without general concepts, science cannot generalize. A social science without abstract concepts would be a series of disconnected facts and microtheories.”

7. Conceptual vs. Operational Definitions • Operational definition • must define concept in terms that clearly define what is to be observed • usually occur in the context of empirical analysis (measurement)

8. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Coherence • Operationalization • Validity • Field Utility • Resonance • Contextual Range • Parsimony • Analytic/empirical utility

9. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Coherence • Internal coherence • External differentiation

10. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Ease of Operationalization • Operationalization = The task of translating a concept into an empirically observable variable • Concepts that are more easily operationalized are, ceteris paribus, better • Need to specify empirical traits necessary and sufficient for concept to be recognized

11. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Concept Validity • “The degree of alignment between a term’s definition and its extension (the phenomenon ‘out there’ that the term is expected to capture).” (48) • “To say that a concept is valid is to say that its referents are, in fact, as they are purported to be.” (48)

12. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Resonance • “clarity” • Try to use words that are commonly used/understood • Avoid inventing new terms if possible, but if necessary do so

13. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Contextual Range • Conceptual breadth – “the more contexts a concept applies to, the better the concept will be”

14. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Parsimony • “Good concepts do not have endless definitions” • Analytic/Empirical Utility • The degree to which the concept fits the theoretical context in which it is applied

15. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Field Utility • “The extent to which a given concept respects the coherence, operationalization, validity, resonance, contextual range, parsimony, and analytic utility of neighboring concepts.” (51)

16. The Ogden-Richards Triangle Term Definition Referents

17. Gerring’s Criteria for Successful Concept Formation • Coherence • Operationalization • Validity • Field Utility • Resonance • Contextual Range • Parsimony • Analytic/empirical utility

18. Alternative Definitions of “Social Movement” • “…a collectivity acting with some continuity to promote or resist a change in the society or organization of which it is a part. As a collectivity a movement is a group with indefinite and shifting membership and with leadership whose position is determined more by informal response of adherents than by formal procedures for legitimizing authority.” (Turner and Killian, 1957)

19. Alternative Definitions of “Social Movement” • “…a sustained series of interactions between power holders and persons successfully claiming to speak on behalf of a constituency lacking formal representation, in the course of which those persons make publicly visible demands for changes in the distribution or exercise of power, and back those demands with public demonstrations of support” (Tilly 1978)

20. Concept Definition • Briefly provide a conceptual definition for the following concept: • Public policy

21. Gerring – Strategies of Definition (Ch. 4) • Sample • Typologize • Define • Minimally • Ideal-Typically • “Inverse relation between intension and extension”

22. Typology Location Subject Matter Subject(s) Function Motivation

23. Minimal Definition

24. Ideal-Type Definition

25. Collier and Levitsky • Sartori – “ladder of generality” • Maximizing differentiation (how?) • The danger of conceptual stretching (what to do?)

26. Collier and Levitsky

27. Collier and Levitsky • Alternative to Sartori: • “Diminished Subtypes” (what are they?) • “Limited Suffrage Democracy” • “Illiberal Democracy”

28. Collier and Levitsky

29. Collier and Levitsky

30. Collier and Levitsky • “Precising the Definition” • South America and “Effective power to rule” Scholars should avoid “definitional gerrymandering” What does this mean?

31. Collier and Levitsky • “Shifting the Overarching Concept” • What does this mean? • Brazil – “Democratic regime” vs. “Democratic state” • Advantages: • Additional analytic category to increase differentiation • Helps avoid conceptual stretching

32. Summary of Strategies • Sartori • Diminished Subtypes • Precising the Definition • Shifting the overarching concept (to raise or lower standard for democracy)

33. Theory • What is theory? • Considerable disagreement • Some define as virtually any form of conceptualization • Others (most?) have a higher threshold

34. Theory • A theory is a “reasoned and precise speculation about the answer to a research question, including a statement about why the proposed answer is correct” (KKV 19)

35. Theory • A set of assumptions involving a set of interrelated concepts from which a causal statement(s) can be derived. These assumptions and causal statement(s) constitute an explanation for the phenomenon under investigation.

36. Theory • A theory is used to generate one or more hypotheses that are empirically observable. • Hypotheses are the logical (empirically observable) implications of theories, but they are not theories.

37. Types of Theory • Different purposes (Gerring) • Generalization • “abstracts from the immediate and observable facts of the case” • Classification • Mutual exclusivity • Exhaustiveness • Comparability • Prediction • Covariation • Priority • Causal Inference

38. Descriptive Theory • Ad Hoc / Taxonomy • place observations into categories (arbitrary or well-defined, conceptually relevant) • does not provide predictions

39. Descriptive Theory • Conceptual frameworks • take taxonomies/typologies one step further and provide empirical proposition/predictions (however these predictions are not established deductively)

40. Conceptual frameworks (examples) Barber’s presidential character • Role Conception: Active / Passive • Personality: Positive / Negative For more information, see: “Barber's Typological Analysis of Political Leaders.” James H. Qualls The American Political Science Review Vol. 71, No. 1 (Mar., 1977), pp. 182-211

44. Descriptive Theory (?) • Conceptual frameworks (examples) • Lowi’s policy typology • Distributive • Regulatory • Redistributive • (Procedural)

45. Causal Theory • Requires at least two variables • A dependent (outcome) variable (usually Y) • One or more independent (explanatory) variables (usually X) • X causes Y

46. Causal Theory • Defining “cause”: • From KKV:

47. Causal Theory • Defining “cause”: • From KKV: • “…the causal effect is the difference between the systematic component of observations made when the explanatory variable takes one value and the systematic component of comparable observations when the explanatory variable takes on another value” (81-82)

48. Causal Theory • Theoretical Systems – combine a set of assumptions/propositions that logically (by deduction) lead to empirical propositions/predictions (hypotheses) • provide causal explanation

49. Causal Theory • Axiomatic Theory • set of concepts and definitions (conceptual and operational) • set of statements describing the situations in which the theory can be applied • set of relational statements, divided into • Axioms (assumed) • Theorems (deduced, testable) • A system logic employed to • Relate all concepts within statements • Deduce theorems from axioms, combinations of axioms, and other theorems

50. Causal Theory • Social scientists generally regard theoretical systems (and axiomatic theory) as the highest/most desirable form of theory. • However, social scientists (political scientists) rarely construct theories in such a formal manner. • Typical theory in political science literature: • Set of concepts • Set of interrelated assumptions • Hypotheses (testable propositions) derived from assumptions