The Comparative

Approach

Mayo, Rhodelyn M.
BSED 3T2
Dr. Brion
What is Comparative Approach?

Master strategy for drawing inferences

about causation in any area of study.
 Why Compare?
Comparative approach broadens our
understanding of the political world,
leading to improved classifications and
giving potential explanation and even
prediction.
 Advantages of Comparison
Learning about other governments
broadens our understanding;
Comparison improves our classifications
of political processes;
Comparison enables us to test hypothesis
about politics;
Comparison gives us some potential for
prediction and control.
What to compare?
Levels of Analysis in
Comparative Politics
 Institution-centered
How governments are organized and the
relationships between these organization.
Logic of Appropriateness refers to actions
which members of an institution take to conform
to its norms.
Logic of Consequence denotes behaviour
directed at achieving an individual goal such as
promotion of re-election.
 Society-centered
How governments are influenced by
the social context in which they operate.
 State-centered
The priorities and traditions of the state
as a whole and how these impinge the
society.
How to compare?
 Case Studies
 to investigate something with significance
beyond its own boundaries.
Techniques in Case Study
• reading academic literature
• examining secondary documents
• searching for primary material
• conducting interviews with participants and other
observers in the country, organization or other
unit under scrutiny.
• experiencing or at least visiting the unit under
study
 Some Types of Case Study
Definition

Representative Typical type of category

Prototypical Expected to become typical

Deviant The exception to the rule

Archetypal Creates the category

Critical If it works here, it will work

 Focused Comparisons
• they are small-N studies concentrating on the
intensive comparison of an aspect of politics in a
few countries.
• Most Similar Design takes similar countries for
comparison of assumption.
• Most Different Design seeks to show the
robustness of a relationship by demonstrating its
validity across diverse settings. (Przeworkski
and Teune, 1970)
 Statistical Analysis
• is based on the variables rather than cases.
• Dependent Variable is the factor we wish to account
for.
• Independent Variable is the factor believed to
influence the dependent variable.
• Correlation coefficient measures the accuracy with
which can we predict from one statistical variable to
another. Correlations are scored from 0-1. Irrespective
of its size, a correlation can be positive or negative.
• Regression Line is the line of best fir in a scatterplot.
• Outliers are the observations furthest away from the
value predicted by the regression line.
 Avoiding Pitfalls
Any approach brings its own dangers
and the breadth inherent in comparative
politics brings its own risks.
• Knowledge Requirements
• Understanding Meaning
• Globalization
• Too many variables, too few countries
• Selection Bias
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING!
GODBLESS!