Key concepts

• Criteria of conceptual goodness (Gerring, 1999)
• From concept/construct to variables (Shoemaker et al., 2003; Ruane, 2016)
• Operational definition (Meier et al., 2014; Ruane, 2016; Shoemaker et al., 2003)
• Measurement validity and reliability (Meier et al., 2014; Ruane, 2016)
• Contrived and natural measure (Ruane, 2016)
• Variables and levels of measurement (Meier et al., 2014; Ruane, 2016; Shoemaker et al., 2003)
• Outputs vs. outcomes (Meier et al., 2014)

Before class

Required readings

1. Gerring, J. (1999). What Makes a Concept Good? A Criterial Framework for Understanding Concept Formation in the Social Sciences. Polity, 31(3), 357–393. https://doi.org/10.2307/3235246
2. Shoemaker, P. J., Tankard, J. W., & Lasorsa, D. L. (2003). Theoretical Concepts: The Building Blocks of Theory. In How to Build Social Science Theories (pp. 15–36). SAGE Publications. http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/utxa/detail.action?docID=996273
3. Ruane, J. M. (2016). Measure by Measure: Developing Measures—Making the Abstract Concrete. In Introducing Social Research Methods: Essentials for Getting the Edge (pp. 93–116). John Wiley & Sons Inc.
4. Meier, K. J., Brudney, J. L., & Bohte, J. (2014). Measurement. In Applied Statistics for Public and Nonprofit Administration.
5. Ruane, J. M. (2016). All That Glitters Is Not Gold: Assessing the Validity and Reliability of Measures. In Introducing Social Research Methods: Essentials for Getting the Edge (pp. 117–138). John Wiley & Sons Inc.

In class

• Lecture on key concepts and frameworks.
• Group discussion on learning plan.
• Review Standard Tests and/or replication project.

After class

Plagiarisms test (5 pts) due this Friday.