Teaching process tracing methods in public policy

TY - CHAP

T1 - Teaching process tracing methods in public policy

AU - Beach, Derek

PY - 2024/1/12

Y1 - 2024/1/12

N2 - Process tracing is a case study method that is used to theorize processes linking causes and outcomes together and trace them empirically. Understanding how public policies are adopted and work requires unpacking the processes behind their adoption and implementation. While tracing processes might seem intuitively easy, both the theorization and evidencing of process is challenging in practice. This chapter explains how process tracing methods can be taught to students in a way that enables them to actually use them in their own research. The chapter introduces how students can be trained to develop better process theories of how public policies might actually work, and more systematically collect and evaluate the evidence in cases. The chapter concludes with discussions of case selection and the potential to generalize about process beyond the studied case.

AB - Process tracing is a case study method that is used to theorize processes linking causes and outcomes together and trace them empirically. Understanding how public policies are adopted and work requires unpacking the processes behind their adoption and implementation. While tracing processes might seem intuitively easy, both the theorization and evidencing of process is challenging in practice. This chapter explains how process tracing methods can be taught to students in a way that enables them to actually use them in their own research. The chapter introduces how students can be trained to develop better process theories of how public policies might actually work, and more systematically collect and evaluate the evidence in cases. The chapter concludes with discussions of case selection and the potential to generalize about process beyond the studied case.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85188751940&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.4337/9781800378117.00026

DO - 10.4337/9781800378117.00026

M3 - Book chapter

SN - 9781800378100

SP - 232

EP - 246

BT - Handbook of Teaching Public Policy

A2 - St.Denny, Emily

A2 - Zittoun, Philippe

PB - Edward Elgar Publishing

CY - Cheltenham

ER -