Qualitative Methods in Political Science

Qualitative methods in political science encompass a diverse set of research strategies designed to illuminate the processes, meanings and mechanisms that underpin political phenomena. Central among these is case study analysis, which allows for an in-depth investigation of single or comparative instances, and process tracing, a within-case approach that reconstructs causal sequences to explain how outcomes emerge. Expert interviews and focus groups provide rich primary data on decision-making and policy development, while ethnographic fieldwork captures the lived experiences of actors within political institutions. Discourse analysis and narrative methods explore the construction and impact of political rhetoric, norms and identities. Advances in digital archival research and remote fieldwork have expanded access to new sources, from government documents to social media archives, facilitating comparative and transnational inquiries. Across these approaches, scholars emphasise methodological rigour through systematic documentation of data collection and analytical procedures, as well as reflexivity about researcher positionality. Increasingly, mixed-method designs integrate qualitative depth with quantitative breadth, fostering evidential diversity and enhancing the reliability of causal inferences. As global challenges grow more complex, qualitative methods continue to offer nuanced insights into governance, policy processes, conflict resolution and democratic consolidation, informing both academic debate and practical interventions.

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Qualitative Methods in Political Science publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in qualitative methods in political science across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Process tracing: A within-case qualitative method that reconstructs the sequence of events or mechanisms linking cause and effect in a single case.

Expert interview: A qualitative data-collection technique that engages individuals with specialised knowledge or involvement in political processes to elicit nuanced insights.

Digital archival research: The use of digitised historical documents and records to conduct remote or comparative qualitative analysis, with attention to biases in selection and digitisation.

References

1. Why Do We Speak to Experts? Reviving the Strength of the Expert Interview Method. Perspectives on Politics (2022).
2. A Case for Description. PS Political Science & Politics (2023).
3. Taming Abundance: Doing Digital Archival Research (as Political Scientists). PS Political Science & Politics (2022).
4. Rigour versus the need for evidential diversity. Synthese (2021).