Theory and Credibility: Integrating Theoretical and Empirical Social Science

Description

A clear and comprehensive framework for bridging the widening gap between theorists and empiricists in social science The credibility revolution, with its emphasis on empirical methods for causal inference, has led to concerns among scholars that the canonical questions about politics and society are being neglected because they are no longer deemed answerable. Theory and Credibility stakes out an opposing view―presenting a new vision of how, working together, the credibility revolution and formal theory can advance social scientific inquiry. This authoritative book covers the conceptual foundations and practicalities of both model building and research design, providing a new framework to link theory and empirics. Drawing on diverse examples from political science, it presents a typology of the rich set of interactions that are possible between theory and empirics. This typology opens up new ways for scholars to make progress on substantive questions, and enables researchers from disparate traditions to gain a deeper appreciation for each other's work and why it matters. Theory and Credibility shows theorists how to create models that are genuinely useful to empirical inquiry, and helps empiricists better understand how to structure their research in ways that speak to theoretically meaningful questions. Cover Contents Preface Acknowledgments 1. Introduction Part I. Foundations 2. The Framework 2.1 The View from Thirty Thousand Feet 2.2 Learning from Agreement or Disagreement 2.3 Women’s Underrepresentation in Electoral Politics 2.4 A Comparison to Other Approaches 2.5 Extrapolation 2.6 Conclusion 3. All Else Equal 3.1 All Else Equal in Theory 3.2 All Else Equal in Empirics 3.3 Commensurability and All Else Equal 3.4 Theoretical Assumptions, Empirical Challenges 3.5 All Else Equal Need Not Be Causal 3.6 Conclusion 4. Models 4.1 Models 4.2 Mechanisms 4.3 Intentionality and Understanding 4.4 Some Guidance onWhat Makes a Good Model 4.5 Conclusion 5. Research Design 5.1 Elements of a Research Design 5.2 Potential Outcomes and the Challenge of All Else Equal 5.3 TheMajor Research Designs 5.4 Putting the ERD to Work 5.5 Sensitivity Analysis 5.6 Conclusion Interlude Part II. Interactions 6. Reinterpreting 6.1 Party Effects in Congress 6.2 Who Becomes a Terrorist? 6.3 Elections and Natural Disasters 6.4 Gleanings 7. Elaborating 7.1 Partisan Bias in Federal Prosecutions 7.2 Accountability and Information 7.3 Elections and Consumption 7.4 Who Becomes a Terrorist? 7.5 Football and Accountability 7.6 Deforestation and Corruption 7.7 Gleanings 8. Distinguishing 8.1 Accountability and Term Limits 8.2 Party Effects in Congress 8.3 Social Pressure and Political Behavior 8.4 Gleanings 9. Disentangling 9.1 Accountability and Competence in Elections 9.2 Economic Shocks and Violence 9.3 Sources of Incumbent Success 9.4 Gleanings 10. Modeling the Research Design 10.1 Close Elections and the Incumbency Advantage 10.2 The Efficacy of Protests 10.3 Gleanings 11. Conclusion Bibliography Index