Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures
- List of Tables
- Preface to the Second Edition
- Acknowledgments to the Second Edition
- Acknowledgments to the First Edition
- 1 The Scientific Study of Politics
- 2 The Art of Theory Building
- 3 Evaluating Causal Relationships
- 4 Research Design
- 5 Getting to Know Your Data: Evaluating Measurement and Variations
- 6 Probability and Statistical Inference
- 7 Bivariate Hypothesis Testing
- 8 Bivariate Regression Models
- 9 Multiple Regression: The Basics
- 10 Multiple Regression Model Specification
- 11 Limited Dependent Variables and Time-Series Data
- 12 Putting It All Together to Produce Effective Research
- Appendix A Critical Values of Chi-Square
- Appendix B Critical Values of t
- Appendix C The Λ Link Function for Binomial Logit Models
- Appendix D The Φ Link Function for Binomial Probit Models
- Bibliography
- Index
5 - Getting to Know Your Data: Evaluating Measurement and Variations
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures
- List of Tables
- Preface to the Second Edition
- Acknowledgments to the Second Edition
- Acknowledgments to the First Edition
- 1 The Scientific Study of Politics
- 2 The Art of Theory Building
- 3 Evaluating Causal Relationships
- 4 Research Design
- 5 Getting to Know Your Data: Evaluating Measurement and Variations
- 6 Probability and Statistical Inference
- 7 Bivariate Hypothesis Testing
- 8 Bivariate Regression Models
- 9 Multiple Regression: The Basics
- 10 Multiple Regression Model Specification
- 11 Limited Dependent Variables and Time-Series Data
- 12 Putting It All Together to Produce Effective Research
- Appendix A Critical Values of Chi-Square
- Appendix B Critical Values of t
- Appendix C The Λ Link Function for Binomial Logit Models
- Appendix D The Φ Link Function for Binomial Probit Models
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
OVERVIEW
Although what political scientists care about is discovering whether causal relationships exist between concepts, what we actually examine is statistical associations between variables. Therefore it is critical that we have a clear understanding of the concepts that we care about so we can measure them in a valid and reliable way. In this chapter we focus on two critical tasks in the process of evaluating causal theories: measurement and descriptive statistics. As we discuss the importance of measurement, we use several examples from the political science literature, such as the concept of political tolerance. We know that political tolerance and intolerance is a “real” thing – that it exists to varying degrees in the hearts and minds of people. But how do we go about measuring it? What are the implications of poor measurement? Descriptive statistics and descriptive graphs, which represent the second focus of this chapter, are what they sound like – they are tools that describe variables. These tools are valuable because they can summarize a tremendous amount of information in a succinct fashion. In this chapter we discuss some of the most commonly used descriptive statistics and graphs, how we should interpret them, how we should use them, and their limitations.
I know it when I see it.
– Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court Potter Stewart, in an attempt to define “obscenity” in a concurring opinion in Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964)These go to eleven.
– Nigel Tufnel (played by Christopher Guest), describing the volume knob on his amplifier, in the movie This Is Spinal Tap- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Fundamentals of Political Science Research , pp. 92 - 128Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2013