How to properly interpret consistency and coverage values in fuzzy-set QCA.

Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is the method of choice for the analysis of set relations and has changed considerably and improved over the years.

As is well known, QCA has been under intense scrutiny in recent years and subject to criticism (sometimes quite strong). I am not going to review studies on the validity of QCA that entail criticism;

When we use the Quine-McCluskey algorithm to derive a QCA solution, we can choose between the conservative, intermediate or parsimonious solution. While I do not have any figures about which solution has been produced how frequently in empirical research, it is safe to say that the conservative solution is quite popular.

At the end of last week, a two-day conference, Qualitative Comparative Analysis – Social Science Applications and Methodological Challenges , took place in Tilburg, the Netherlands. Needless to say, the recent and ongoing wave of criticism of QCA was a key topic on the agenda and in discussions among participants.

Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is a method utilized by different disciplines in the social sciences and beyond, e.g., business economics and management. However, QCA users must still justify their choice of method more frequently than the users of other methods. Whatever the reason, it is actually not a bad thing to reflect upon the choice of a method because it should be suitable for answering our research question.

If this was a blog post about the #APSA2014, I would have to write about Friday night’s fire emergency at the Marriott (i.e., #APSAonfire) as the non-academic event that left a definite imprint (and affected me as one of the many people who had a room at the Marriott). But uncomfortable as that night had been, I will focus instead on the ongoing debate about set theory and Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) which are the

As an approach to and method for the analysis of set relations, Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) belongs in the toolbox of many social scientists (and organizational and management researchers alike). Although it has proven to be very popular, a question that one still often confronts is: what is QCA? Even those who understand the technicalities of QCA wonder what the qualitative part in QCA represents in practice.