Research Design
Jan Osička
Lecture outline
• Research typologies
• Theory: what is it (good for)?
• Research strategies: from data to theory and back
• Designing social research
• Sample research design
Research typologies
Which typologies do you know?
Scope
Parsimony (~ reductionism)
• Limited scope and already known structure
Holism
• Wide scope and yet-to-emerge structure
Role of the researcher
Subjective
• Researcher-induced interpretatitions are valid
Objective
• Only rigorous data interpretations are valid
Causality
Logic of explaining
• Causal relationships
• Event „cause“ =(time and mechanism)> event
„effect“
=> general knowledge
Logic of understanding
• Understanding of how certain effect has emerged
=> case-specific knowledge
Units
• Cases (spatially delimited phenomenon observed at
a single point in time or over a period of time;
Gerring 2007:19)
• Variables (concepts that can have various values;
Van Evera 1997:10)
The N
Qualitative
• Small N (up to 10)
Quantitative
• Large N (100 and more)
Direction
Induction
• Generalizing from available data
Deduction
• Using general knowledge to interpret data
Inductive research strategy I
Inductive research strategy II
Inductive research strategy III
Inductive research strategy IV
Deductive research strategy I
Deductive research strategy II
Theory
„A set of interrelated constructs (concepts),
definitions, and propositions that present a
systematic view of phenomena by specifying
relations among variables with the purpose of
explaining and predicting phenomena.“
Fred Kerlinger, 1986:9
Two meta-typologies
Parsimonious
Deductive
Objective
Variable-oriented
Quantitative
Holistic
Inductive
Subjective
Case-oriented
Qualitative
Research design (Blaikie 2011)
• Research topic
• Research question
• Literature review
• Theory
• Method
• Data
• Problems and limitations
Conducting a research
Phase Focus on
Preliminary Background knowledge
Preparatory Research topic
Research question
Literature review
Theoretical assumptions
Methodology
Data overview
Analysis Data collection
Data processing
Results interpretation
Reporting Research report
Preparatory phase
• Draws heavily from the substantial knowledge
• Continuous process
• Results in the final version of the research design
Preparatory phase
Preliminary Background knowledge
Preparatory
Research
topic
Literature
review
Research
question
Theory
Method
Data
Research design
Research report
• Does not need to follow the structure of the research
• Shall include only information directly related to the
aim and scope of the research.
Deductive Inductive
Theory and Literature
Basis for the work with
data
Research justification
Data
A tool for working with
the theory (can be
presented separately)
An inseparable part of
the analysis
Research report
• Annotation
• Introduction (Research topic & Research question)
• Literature review
• Theory
• Method & Data
• Analysis
• Interpretation
• Conclusions
Sample research design
Ross, M. L. (2001), Does oil hinder democracy? World
Politics 53.
(http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/uploadedFiles/exed/sit
es/ldf/Academic/Ross%20-
%20Does%20Oil%20Hinder%20Democracy.pdf)
Research topic
• The relation between oil rent and the nature of
regime.
• Common assumption: rising income implies more
democracy
• However: democratizing effect shrinks or
disappears if rising income comes from oil.
=> Oil as an exception?
Research questions
• Does oil wealth impedes democracy?
• If yes,
• Does it happen only in the Middle East or is it
valid for all oil-rich states?
• Is it oil‘s unique property or is it valid also for
non-fuel minerals?
• If yes, what is the causal mechanism?
• Rentier effect
• Repression effect
• Modernization effect
Literature review (Pp 329-337)
• Oil – minerals – democracy nexus
• The „Rentier state“ concept
Theory
The Rentier state concept (Mahdavy 1970)
• Rentier effect
• Repression effect
• Modernization effect
Method
• Statistical analysis (least-squares method)
• Dependent variable: Regime
• Independent variable: Oil and minerals (fuel/non-
fuel)
• Control variables: Income, Islam, OECD
membership, Regime (t-5)
• Dummy variables: 26 for each year (1971-1997) to
capture two time-specific effects: the cold war, the
„contagion“ of regime transitions
Indicators and data (Pp 358-361)
• Regime: indexes of Polity98 (Polity III, Polity IV;
Freedomhouse)
• Oil and Minerals: export value as fractions of GDP
(Sachs and Warnes 1995, Leite and Weidmann 1999)
• Income: GDP PPP (World Bank, CIA World Factbook)
• Islam: % of Muslims in state‘s population (Barrett 1982;
CIA World Factbook)
• OECD: 1/0 (OECD info)
• Regime (t-5): indexes of Polity98
Results
Total: 2,183 observations from 113 countries
»Oil does hinder democracy
»In poor states more
»In oil-poor states more
»This is not limited to the Middle East
»Nonfuel minerals hinder democracy too
»Oil wealth affects the regime through all three
mechanisms; mineral wealth mostly through
rentier effect and not at all through repression
effect