David Collier is among the most influential thinkers on conceptualization, foundational to social science inquiry. An eminent political scientist, he specializes in mixed methods and comparative politics. Working with Concepts brings together David Collier's most influential research on concepts and measurement, refined and reframed, to offer a systematic approach to concept analysis. It serves as a reference book for both students and seasoned scholars grappling with concepts. Collier's essays are accompanied by commentaries by twelve scholars who connect his contributions to ongoing debates in the field. The commentaries open up new lines of research and provoke ongoing scholarly reaction and innovation. Tightly organized with the aim of moving the field forward, this collection of essays explores some of the contours of the field and its milestones to show how careful work with concepts is a foundation of good methodology. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
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Offers a lively introduction to new ideas about concepts and concept analysis in political science and international studies.
Acknowledgments; Preface Zachary Elkins; Introduction: learning about
concepts David Collier; Part I. Traveling, Stretching, and Conceptual
Hierarchies:
1. Conceptual stretching revisited: adapting concepts in
comparative analysis David Collier and James E. Mahon;
2. Democracy with
adjectives: conceptual hierarchies in comparative research David Collier and
Steven Levitsky;
3. Trajectory of a concept: corporatism in the study of
Latin American politics David Collier; Research Notes:
4. A warning:
maintaining conceptual boundaries in the era of democratic anxiety Kurt
Weyland;
5. The V-Dem project: a multidimensional perspective on 'democracy
with adjectives' Michael Coppedge;
6. Successful conceptual traveling:
corporatism in Latin America, 19952023 Sarah Chartock; Part II. Typologies
and Concept Formation:
7. Putting typologies to work: concept formation,
measurement, and analytic rigor David Collier, Jody LaPorte and Jason
Seawright; Research Notes:
8. Typologies and concept formation: untangling
clientelism Simeon Nichter;
9. Working with typologies: analytic leverage in
post-communist studies Danielle Lussier; Part III. Untangling Concepts:
Contestation, Pragmatism, and Disaggregation:
10. Essentially contested
concepts: debates and applications David Collier, Daniel Hidalgo and Olivia
Maciuceanu;
11. Democracy and dichotomies: a pragmatic approach to choices
about concepts David Collier and Robert Adcock;
12. Inducements versus
constraints: disaggregating corporatism Ruth Berins Collier and David
Collier; Research Notes:
13. Genocide: a legal concept for the social
sciences? Scott Straus;
14. Contested concepts: a Large-N analysis John
Gerring and Lee Cojocaru;
15. Conceptual disaggregation: strengthening
analytic leverage Marcus Kurtz; Part IV. Measurement Validity:
16.
Measurement validity: a shared standard for qualitative and quantitative
research Robert Adcock and David Collier;
17. Rival strategies of validation:
options and trade-offs Jason Seawright and David Collier; Research Notes:
18.
How have interpretivism and big data changed the landscape for measurement
validation? Jason Seawright;
19. Conceptual choices, measurement validity,
and dubious dualisms Robert Adcock; Part V. Reaching Out to New Domains:
20.
Digital semantics: formal methods of concept mapping Zachary Elkins;
21.
Causal inference: the critical role of concepts Thad Dunning;
22. Formal
theory and concept formation: practical advice for non-modelers Benjamin
Lessing; Part VI. Teaching:
23. Moving forward: teaching concepts and concept
analysis Jennifer Bussell;
24. Notes on teaching concept analysis Zachary
Elkins; Part VII. Conclusion:
25. Conclusion: working with concepts David
Collier and Zachary Elkins.
Zachary Elkins is Professor in the Department of Government at the University of Texas. He publishes widely in the fields of comparative politics, methodology, and public law, with a focus on Latin America and the origins and consequences of constitutional design. He co-directs the Comparative Constitutions Project and has developed a set of tools to analyze constitutions and other canonical documents.
