Comparative Policy Studies: Conceptual and Methodological Challenges(ECPR Research Methods)

In the first volume of its kind, a collection of top policy scholars combine empirical and methodological analysis in the field of comparative policy studies to provide compelling insights into the formulation, implementation and evaluation of policies across regional and national boundaries.

Table of Contents:
1. Conceptual and Methodological Challenges in Comparative Public Policy; Christine Rothmayr and Isabelle Engeli PART I: TYPES OF COMPARISONS AND THEIR METHODOLOGICAL CHALLENGES 2. Conceptualizing Public Policy; Michael Howlett and Ben Cashore 3. Selecting Research Cases and Inferential Types in Comparative Public Policy Research; Jeroen van der Heijden PART II: COMPARATIVE DESIGNS 4. Case Studies and (Causal-) Process Tracing; Joachim Blatter and Markus Haverland 5. Intermediate-N Comparison: Configurational Comparative Methods; Isabelle Engeli, Benoît Rihoux, and Christine Rothmayr 6. Quantitative Methodologies in Public Policy; Christian Breunig and John Ahlquist 7. Interpretive Analysis and Comparative Research; Dvora Yanow PART III: NEW CHALLENGES IN COMPARATIVE DESIGNS 8. Comparing Beyond Europe and North America; Joseph Wong 9. Methods for the Analysis of Policy Interdependence; Fabrizio Gilardi 10. Gendering Comparative Policy Studies: Towards Better Sciencel; Amy G. Mazur andSeason Hoard 11. Mixed-Methods Designs in Comparative Public Policy: The Dismantling of Pension Policies; Adrienne Héritier and Sophie Biesenbender

About the Author :
John S. Ahlquist, University of Wisconsin, USA Sophie Biesenbender, Institute for Research Information and Quality Assurance, Germany Joachim Blatter, University of Lucerne, Switzerland Christian Breunig, University of Konstanz, Germany Ben Cashore, Yale University, USA Fabrizio Gilardi, University of Zurich, Switzerland Markus Haverland, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands Adrienne Héritier, European University Institute, Italy Season Hoard, Washington State University, USA Michael Howlett,Simon Fraser University, USA and National University of Singapore Amy G. Mazur, Washington State University, USA Jeroen van der Heijden Australian National University and the University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands Benoît Rihoux, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium Joseph Wong, University of Toronto, Canada Dvora Yanow, Wageningen University, the Netherlands

Review :
'This volume offers an encompassing assessment of major methodological challenges in comparative public policy. The chapters provide highly instructive insights and ideas on how to improve the design and research programs in comparative policy studies. This way, the book will significantly help to advance the state-of-the art in this field especially with regard to theory-building and theory-testing' Prof. Christoph Knill, University of Munich, Germany This new book merits attention by anyone interested in comparative studies of public policy, in particular students and scholars thinking seriously about how to design a research project or evaluate an existing literature. The editors have brought together a stellar group of experts in the full range of methodologies associated with cross national studies of public policy, from case studies to large quantitative studies, from gendering public policy to expanding the empirical base of knowledge away from western societies, from QCA to mixed methods. In sum, this is one-stop shopping for an overview of the state of the art in comparative studies of public policy. Frank R. Baumgartner, Department of Political Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA