Full Description
This lively and accessible textbook on methodology in social and political science focuses centrally on the debate between positivist and constructivist approaches. Introducing a range of key topics and issues which show how methodological pluralism can be combined with intellectual rigour, it guides students through how they can exploit the manifold ways of knowing as they begin to embark on their own research.The textbook is ideal for undergraduate and master degree students who are taking icourses on philosophy of social science, social and political analysis and research methods.
Contents
Introduction .- Philosophy of Naturalist Science .- The Experimental Method .- The Statistical Method .- The Comparative Method .- History, Interviews and Case Studies .- Sowing Doubts about the Naturalist Methodology .- A Constructivist Philosophy of Science .- From Story-Telling to Telling Histories .- Comparing Contexts .- Contextualizing Statistics .- Interpretive Experiments .- Conclusion.
