Paradoxes and Pitfalls in Using Fuzzy Set QCA
Illustrations from a Critical Review of a Study of Educational Inequality
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 15085472 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Barry Cooper (0000-0003-4745-431X, Durham University), Judith Glaesser (0000-0002-6173-3596, Durham University) |
| Year | 2011 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 106-119 |
| Publication date | 2011-08-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Sociological Research Online (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1360-7804 • E-ISSN: 1360-7804 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.5153/sro.2444 |
| OpenAlex | W2107421490 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 21 |
| References cited | 16 |
Charles Ragin's crisp set and fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (csQCA and fsQCA) are being used by increasing numbers of social scientists interested in combining analytic rigour with case-based approaches. As with all techniques that become available in easy-to-use software packages, there is a danger that QCA will come to be used in a routinised manner, with not enough attention being paid to its particular strengths and weaknesses. Users of fsQCA in particular need to be very aware of particular problems that can arise when fuzzy logic lies behind their analyses. This paper aims to increase its readers' understanding of some of these problems and of some means by which they might be alleviated. We use a critical discussion of a recent paper by Freitag and Schlicht addressing social inequality in education in Germany as our vehicle. After summarising the substantive claims of the paper, we explain some key features of QCA. We subsequently discuss two main issues, (i) limited diversity and the various ways of using counterfactual reasoning to address it, and (ii) the logical paradoxes that can arise when using fsQCA. Making different choices than Freitag and Schlicht do in respect of dealing with these two issues, we undertake some reanalysis of their data, showing that their conclusions must be treated with some caution. We end by drawing some general lessons for users of QCA
Counterfactual thinking · Economics · Epistemology · Fuzzy logic · Fuzzy set · Inequality · Machine learning · Management science · Operations research · Positive economics · Qualitative comparative analysis · Rigour · Sociology · Computer Science · Mathematics · Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research · Artificial Intelligence
Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences
What factors enable social-ecological transformative potential? The role of learning practices, empowerment, and networking
Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis of implementation outcomes in an integrated mental healthcare trial in South Africa
Exploring the consequences of a recalibration of causal conditions when assessing sufficiency with fuzzy set QCA
Speaking up under constraints
Qualitative Comparative Analysis in Education Research
Pragmatic Comparative Research
Die Ausgaben der Schweizer Kantone ‐ Eine Fuzzy Set QCA
Exploring the robustness of set theoretic findings from a large n fsQCA
Membership function sensitivity of descriptive statistics in fuzzy-set relations
The capacity of water governance to deal with the climate change adaptation challenge
Cora
The path(s) to employee trust in direct supervisor in nascent and established relationships
Demographic challenges and agricultural abandonment
The productive and protective dimensions of welfare in Asia and the Pacific
Professional development at the local level
Tourism and the refugee crisis in Greece
A configurational analysis of ethnic protest in Europe
Enhancing Sensitivity Diagnostics for Qualitative Comparative Analysis
Organizational Capability in the Public Sector
Qualitative Comparative Analysis, Necessary Conditions, and Limited Diversity
Fuzzy-Set Social Science
Redesigning Social Inquiry
Fuzzy set ideal type analysis
Using case‐based approaches to analyse large datasets
Assessing the Trivialness, Relevance, and Relative Importance of Necessary or Sufficient Conditions in Social Science
Contrasting Variable-Analytic and Case-Based Approaches to the Analysis of Survey Datasets
Set Relations in Social Research
Educational Federalism in Germany
How has Educational Expansion Changed the Necessary and Sufficient Conditions for Achieving Professional, Managerial and Technical Class Positions in Britain? A Configurational Analysis
Applying Ragin's Crisp and Fuzzy Set QCA to Large Datasets
Selectivity and Flexibility in the German Secondary School System
| Unique citing works | 21 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,5 |
| Citation span | 2012 - 2026 (15) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 17 |