GV249      One Unit
Research Design in Political Science

This information is for the 2025/26 session.

Course Convenor

Availability

The course will introduce students to the design, conduct and analysis of research in empirical Political Science spanning different subfields. The first term covers the formulation of research questions, and the development of theory and empirically testable hypotheses. From there, we will discuss different types of data, measurement, the distinction between description and inference, as well as correlation and causation, and basic quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis strategies. Moreover, students will learn about research ethics, and some of the major methodological challenges that we face as a discipline including p-hacking, the file-drawer problem, issues of statistical power, as well as potential solutions such as pre-registration and results-blind review. The second term introduces students to specific research designs including ethnographic research, comparative case studies, as well as experimental and quasi-experimental designs. Throughout the year, there is an emphasis on the importance of good research design, and a solid understanding of the assumptions underlying the design that have implications for data analysis. The ultimate goal of the course is to equip students with the knowledge and skills to conduct their own research projects such as their BA/BSc thesis, and to allow them to evaluate published and unpublished work, as well as scientific and journalistic claims, based on the quality of the underlying research design.
In AT, the course includes an introduction to the statistical programming language R, where students will learn practical skills of basic data management and analysis.

15 hours of lectures and 9 hours of classes in the Autumn Term.
15 hours of lectures and 10 hours of classes in the Winter Term.
1.5 hours of lectures and 1 hours of classes in the Spring Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Autumn and Winter Term.

Problem sets

Students will complete three formative problem sets throughout the course, two in AT and one in WT, that allow them to apply material from the course to concrete political science examples (e.g., identifying design elements of a published research paper; proposing strategies for answering a given research question, etc.). Some of these problem sets will involve applied problems in R.

Bueno de Mesquita, E. & Fowler, A. 2022. Thinking Clearly with Data: A Guide to Quantitative Reasoning and Analysis. Princeton University Press.

Geddes, B. 2003. Paradigms and Sand Castles: Theory building and research design in comparative politics. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press.

Gerber, A. S., and D. P. Green. 2008. Field experiments and natural experiments. The Oxford Handbook of Political Science. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Healy, K. 2017. Fuck nuance, Sociological Theory 35(2): 118–127.

Kellstedt, P.M. and Whitten, G.D., 2018. The fundamentals of political science research. Cambridge University Press.

King, G.; Keohane, R. O. & Verba, S. 1994. Designing Social Inquiry. Princeton University Press.

Mill, J.S. 1882. A System of Logic, Chapter VIII. On the four methods of experimental inquiry. 8th edition. Harper and Brothers.

Wedeen, L. 2010. Reflections on ethnographic work in political science. Annual Review of Political Science 13: 255-272.

Exam (50%), duration: 120 Minutes in the Spring exam period

Problem sets (20%, 1800 words) in Winter Term Week 2

Proposal (30%, 2000 words) in Spring Term Week 1

The coursework to be submitted in the Winter Term will consist of a Summative Problem Set, and the coursework to be submitted in the Spring Term will consist of a Research Design Proposal. 

GENERAL COURSE STUDENTS ONLY:

The Class Summary Grade for General Course students will be calculated as follows: 33% Problem Set 1, 33% Problem Set 2, and 34% Problem Set 3.