Latent structureCase Study Methodology
Process Tracing
Process Tracing is a qualitative research method developed by George and Bennett (2005) for studying causal mechanisms and causal chains within individual cases. It involves examining the sequence of events and decision-making processes within a case to infer whether a hypothesized causal mechanism actually operated. Process tracing aims to strengthen causal inference in case studies by looking beyond correlation to understand how causes produce effects.
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Sources
- Bennett, A., & Checkel, J. T. (Eds.). (2015). Process Tracing: From Metaphor to Analytic Tool. Cambridge University Press. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9781316471600 ↗
- George, A. L., & Bennett, A. (2005). Case Studies and Theory Development in the Social Sciences. MIT Press. ISBN: 9780262072564
- Fairfield, T., & Charman, A. E. (2017). Explicit causal chains? Evaluating new directions for process tracing. Comparative Political Studies, 50(12), 1584-1607. DOI: 10.1177/0010414016688003 ↗