Confronting Theories Based on Necessary Relations: Making the Best of QCA Possibilities

TY - JOUR

T1 - Confronting Theories Based on Necessary Relations

T2 - Making the Best of QCA Possibilities

AU - Bol, Damien

AU - Luppi, Francesca

N1 - Presented at "QCA, 25 Years after “The Comparative Method”: Mapping, Challenges, and Innovations—Mini-Symposium"

PY - 2013/3

Y1 - 2013/3

N2 - Current standard practices put sufficiency at the core of Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), while the analysis of necessity is limited to the test of necessary conditions. Here, we argue that the possibilities of QCA in the latter domain are much greater. In particular, it can be used to empirically confront theories centered on necessary relations and that involved various conditions. A new operation, labeled "the systemic necessity assessment," is therefore introduced. To show its added value, a published QCA study that confronts theories centered on necessary relations but using regular minimization is replicated.

AB - Current standard practices put sufficiency at the core of Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), while the analysis of necessity is limited to the test of necessary conditions. Here, we argue that the possibilities of QCA in the latter domain are much greater. In particular, it can be used to empirically confront theories centered on necessary relations and that involved various conditions. A new operation, labeled "the systemic necessity assessment," is therefore introduced. To show its added value, a published QCA study that confronts theories centered on necessary relations but using regular minimization is replicated.

U2 - 10.1177/1065912912468269

DO - 10.1177/1065912912468269

M3 - Conference paper

SN - 1065-9129

VL - 66

SP - 205

EP - 210

JO - POLITICAL RESEARCH QUARTERLY

JF - POLITICAL RESEARCH QUARTERLY

IS - 1

ER -