In recent years there has been an explosion of research on qualitative methodology and methods in the social sciences at large, and in the field of Political Science in particular. This Major Work presents a comprehensively curated collection of key literature on this subject, organised into four thematic volumes: Volume One includes papers on the ontological and epistemological foundations of qualitative research, before moving onto articles that compare qualitative with quantitative research, as well as statements that contrast the divergent strands within qualitative research. Volume Two includes literature that exemplifies the tradition and techniques of cross-case comparisons. Volume Three is devoted to the spectrum of approaches that focuses on within-case analysis in order to provide evidence for causal claims. The selected works shed light on the corresponding major concepts: causal mechanisms, congruence and process tracing. Volume Four captures the spectrum of qualitative methods that highlights the importance of context and social constructions (meanings) and is most often summed up as interpretivism: ethnographic and practice approaches as well as discourse, frame and narrative analysis.
