Methods for Quantitative Macro-Comparative Research

Salvatore J. Babones is a senior lecturer in sociology and social policy at the University of Sydney and an associate fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS). Previously, he was an assistant professor of sociology, public health, and public and international affairs at the University of Pittsburgh. He holds both a PhD in sociology and an MSE in mathematical sciences from the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Babones is the author or editor of eight books and more than thirty academic papers. He is the editor of Applied Statistical Modeling and Fundamentals of Regression Modeling, both published by SAGE as part of the Benchmarks in Social Research Methods reference series. His academic research focuses on globalization, economic development, and statistical methods for comparative social science research.

PART I: MACRO-COMPARATIVE DATA STRUCTURES 1. The Logic of Macro-Comparative Research 2. The International Data Infrastructure 3. Variable Operationalization 4. The Structure of Country Data PART II: STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF MACRO-COMPARATIVE DATA 5. Statistical Modeling with Cross-Sectional Designs 6. Structured and Longitudinal Designs for Establishing Causality 7. Repeated Measures and Multilevel Modeling 8. An Interpretive Research and Policy Framework Conclusion: The Political Economy of Quantitative Macro-Comparative Research

"There isn't any text I am aware of like this, and as the author notes, there is an increasing amount of interest in this area, so a text is needed." -Richard York, University of Oregon -- Richard York * Richard York * "All too often statistical analysis texts lose sight of the reasons for conducting the research in the first place, but that is certainly not the case here...The chapters thus far actually go far beyond much of the current work by both synthesizing a wide variety of material and explicitly dealing with many of the taken for granted assumptions...All of the writing is quite clear, even when it verges into quite complex methodological territory. The examples are well chosen." -Buster Smith, Catawba College -- Buster Smith * Buster Smith * "This should be required reading for World Bank, OECD and U.N. researchers and data collectors as well as applied and academic sociologists, economists, political scientists and others who conduct cross country comparisons using publicly available large datasets. -Ernesto Castaneda, University of Texas at El Paso -- Ernesto Castaneda * Ernesto Castaneda * "I really don't know how the author has managed it, but he covers complex material in an incredibly clear way...I think students who have a weaker background in statistics will learn a lot from the text and students with an advanced background in statistics will look at their analyses in a different way (from the point of planning analyses to actually interpreting results)." -Lesley Williams Reid, Georgia State University -- Lesley Williams Reid * Lesley Williams Reid * "I suspect this book will greatly enhance the teaching and practice of rigorous macro-level comparative analysis. It is a welcome addition to the teaching and training of future comparativists...I like very much the author's courage in directly assessing and sometimes challenging the existing literature...This book must be taken seriously by all students of comparative politics. One can learn a great deal from it-it is a "big picture" book, covering well and widely the current state of research and analysis utilizing macro-approaches to the study of comparative politics." -Thomas Lancaster, Emory University -- Thomas Lancaster * Thomas Lancaster * "The author explains complex concepts very well. Indeed, I found this far easier to read than most discussions of statistical methods." -Laura Hatcher, Southern Illinois University -- Laura Hatcher * Laura Hatcher * "This is a book of PRIZE WINNING quality...It is also a profoundly original, highly convincing and very innovative attempt to reformulate macro methods to avoid the pitfalls of the cliched solutions that have filled macro journals with sloppy unconvincing pseudo-scientific analyses for the last twenty years." -Samuel Cohn, Texas A&M University -- Samuel Cohn * Samuel Cohn *