Introduction to Political Science Research Methods - 1st Edition

Reviewed by Eliot Dickinson, Professor, Western Oregon University on 4/5/24

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

I can compare it to a major research methods textbook that I used for years. That book has 15 chapters, while this one has ten, which is actually more conducive to the 11-week quarter system still found on the West Coast.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The book is factually accurate, free of significant errors, and objective in its analysis.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

This text can be used for years, as the examples and cases are relevant for our times.

Clarity rating: 5

The text is written in a way that the average college freshman will be able to understand.

Consistency rating: 5

The text is consistent from chapter to chapter, from beginning to end, with a glossary of key terms at the end of each chapter.

Modularity rating: 5

The text is broken up into very readable chapters that are not overwhelming. Students will appreciate this aspect of the text, since it is succinct and offers units of reasonable length.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

It is organized like most other research methods textbooks. It includes opening chapters on the history and development of political science, so that it can also be used in a "Scope and Methods of PS" course.

Interface rating: 5

The text is easy to navigate with both a brief table of contents and a detailed table of contents, and the images and charts are clear throughout.

Grammatical Errors rating: 4

It reads well although there there is a typo in the first paragraph of the first page and another typo on the third page. It would be helpful to correct these in future editions.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The text is culturally and politically correct. It's perfectly accessible to everyone.

Comments

This is a valuable contribution to higher education and, being an open resource, is helpful to students.

Reviewed by Hakseon Lee, Professor, James Madison University on 3/23/24

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

Most materials that are supposed to be taught at an introductory political science research methods are covered. Quantitative analysis section is relatively short, but considering it is an "intro" textbook, it's understandable. BTW Including Ch. 9 Research Ethics is very helpful for students understand research on “human subjects” more in depth.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

Overall, explanations of abstract and complex concepts are well presented. The concepts and definitions provided in the glossary are accurate as well.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The textbook is written for undergraduate political science major students, and the level of complexity is quite relevant to them. Research methods materials are not fast changing subject and the textbook’s contents have longevity.

Clarity rating: 5

The textbook is written very clearly and easy to understand. After each chapter, summary of each subsection in chapters are provided in a very succinct and clear way, and I believe the summary sections are beneficial to students

Consistency rating: 5

Even though the textbook is written by several authors, they followed the same format of each chapter: providing clear learning objectives, summary, review questions, critical thinking questions, suggestions for further study, and references. Students will not be confused at all reading chapter by chapter.

Modularity rating: 5

Having total of 10 chapters, the textbook can be easily used module by module structure. Each chapter has subsections which have clear learning objectives, and this will be helpful for instructors who plan to use the textbook sequentially.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

Overall organization and structure follow conventional existing textbooks’ organization/structure. Majority of undergraduate research methods class are taught from history and development of research methods to quantitative analysis step by step, and the textbook follows the usual organization/structure.

Interface rating: 5

The book is very much reader friendly. Table of contents are very well organized and readers can have an easy overlook of the textbook.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I have not found significant or consistent grammatical errors at all.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

Introducing diverse coauthors with cartoon images at the beginning of the textbook is helpful for students to learn about diverse authors. Also, examples used have diverse backgrounds.

Reviewed by Huei-Jyun Ye, Assistant Professor, Wabash College on 10/23/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This textbook covers the scientific method of studying politics, theory and hypothesis building, conceptualization and operationalization, elements of research design, qualitative methods, quantitative methods, and research ethics. For the very intro level (for freshmen or sophomores), this textbook will serve well. For advanced undergraduate courses, this textbook lacks an introduction to specific research methods like surveys, experiments, case comparisons, etc. This textbook touches a little bit on qualitative and quantitative approaches but does not explain the methods political scientists use. I feel this is a tradeoff for an introduction textbook. Instructors who are seeking materials explaining methods will need to find other supplements. Other than that, I would recommend using this book to explain the process of doing political science research.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

The explanations of political science research methods are spot-on and comprehensible. I do not find big mistakes in the chapters.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

I believe we can use this textbook for a long time as most of the concepts are standards of the field. Some examples address timely concerns that political scientists have been working on. The studies referred to in the textbook are also not obsolete.

Clarity rating: 5

The textbook is overall clear and easy to read. The authors make good efforts to explain the jargon in plain language. For example, when introducing conceptualization and operationalization, the author asks questions as if they were students and provides answers to explain the ideas. Different from throwing all the jargon and definitions to readers’ faces, students may find this conversation style more accessible.

Consistency rating: 5

The authors do a good job of setting a tone for this textbook, even though it is written by multiple authors. Each chapter starts with an outline, followed by content, glossary, summary, review questions, and suggestions for further study. Readers can expect all these elements in every chapter.

Modularity rating: 5

The chapters can be easily turned into sequential modules. What is even better is that the authors provide learning objectives for each section, not just for chapters. This design makes it easier for instructors to break down each chapter into smaller tasks. Students can know what to expect or take away from the subsections in each module. The summary and review questions at the end of each chapter also serve as a good wrap-up for individual modules.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The organization of the chapters is logical and straightforward. The subsections within each chapter are well-connected. Students would not have any problem building up their understanding of the research inquiry process when they read over the textbook.

Interface rating: 5

The Introduction to Political Science Research Methods is reader-friendly. I have no difficulty in following the sections, and the formatting, including figures and tables, does not go off the place. Also, the PDF keeps the bookmarks so that readers can clearly see the structure on the sidebar and jump to different sections easily.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

I do not notice major grammatical errors.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

This book uses studies on various topics and has broad cultural implications. I appreciate that the examples and studies that the authors choose to demonstrate how to do political science research cover diversity and equity in society. The authors also present different schools of view without imposing a specific paradigm on the readers.

Comments

I recommend this book.

Reviewed by Lindsay Benstead, Professor of Politics & Global Affairs, Portland State University on 8/12/23

Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less

This textbook covers topics in a comprehensive overview of methodology used in Political Science. It is suitable for an introductory course (e.g., 100-200 level), in that it covers the 'History and Development of the Empirical Study of Politics," which includes basic facts about the history of the field of Politics. It then covers topics in quantitative and qualitative analysis. Importantly, it includes a section on ethics.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

In my review of the textbook and use in designing a new course, I found the information presented in the textbook to be accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

Since this textbook covers foundational topics in research methods, it is likely to remain relevant for a decade or more.

Clarity rating: 5

This textbook is written in a clear way that will be understood by students in introductory political science methods courses (e.g., 100-200 level). This is not to say that more advanced students would not benefit from reading this textbook, but only if they are undergraduate or graduate students just beginning their study of research methods in the field.

Consistency rating: 5

This book is internally consistent. In addition to content in each chapter, it includes m/c questions, open-ended questions, and resources for further study. These are presented at the end of each chapter in such a way that they can consistently be assigned to students on a weekly basis and used in the preparation of exams and quizzes.

Modularity rating: 5

Each chapter is broken up into multiple sections, making it easy for instructors to present the material in modular and easily digestible ways.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

The book is well organized, proceeding in a logical way from introductory material through quantitative topics, followed by qualitative methods and research ethics.

Interface rating: 5

The pdf interface is easily navigated.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

There are not grammatical errors in the book that I noted.

Cultural Relevance rating: 5

The textbook has several authors. The authors provide cartoon images of themselves. The group of authors come from diverse backgrounds, making the book more likely to help students from diverse backgrounds know that Political Science is their field of study.

Comments

I recommend this book.