Political Science 3000
Political Analysis
First Exam Review
The scientific study of politics
- Scientific Method - What makes something scientific?
- problems of studying politics scientifically
Concepts
- concepts and conceptual definitions
Operationalizations/Operational Definitions
- functions
- considerations
- validity
- types
- face validity
- criterion validity
- construct validity
- reliability
- Inter-rater reliability
- Inter-item reliability
Levels of measurement
- Nominal
- Ordinal
- Interval
- Ratio
- components to determining level of measurement
- importance of the categories and the concept being operationalized
Units of Analysis
- Individual v. aggregate data
- ecological fallacy
- individualistic fallacy
- difference between level of analysis and unit of analysis
Variables and causation
- identification of independent and dependent variables
- control variables
- logic of causation
- correlation/covariation
- time order
- control for other possible explanations
Hypotheses
- characteristics of "good" hypotheses
- testable
- specific
- plausible (justifiable)
- Explicit Comparison v. Directional formats
- null v. research hypotheses
Research Designs
- Experimental designs
- types
- Classical
- Post-test only
- Solomon 4 Group
- Non-experimental designs
- types
- Cross-sectional (correlational)
- Time-Series
- Panel
- Pooled Cross-sectional time-series
- Internal v. External Validity
