Conceptual “Stretching” Revisited: Adapting Categories in Comparative Analysis

• Published in: The American political science review Vol. 87; no. 4; pp. 845 - 855
• Main Authors: Collier, David, Mahon, James E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, USA Cambridge University Press 01.12.1993; American Political Science Association
• Subjects: Adjectives; AUTHORITARIANISM; Comparative analysis; Comparative Study; Competitive authoritarianism; Democracy; DEMOCRATIC PROCESS AND INSTITUTIONS; Economic models; Family resemblance; History, theory and methodology; Intensionality; Methodology; Methods; MODELING, MODELS; Mothers; Participatory democracy; Political debate; Political science; Political science research; Political Theory; Qualitative comparative analysis; SCHOLARLY ENDEAVORS AND REVIEWS OF SCHOLARSHIP; Social research; Sociology; United States Of America; Comparative Analysis; Ideal Types; Category; Methodology; School of Thought; Conceptualization; Democracy; Family; Models; Authoritarianism
• ISSN: 0003-0554; 1537-5943
• DOI: 10.2307/2938818

When scholars extend their models and hypotheses to encompass additional cases, they commonly need to adapt their analytic categories to fit the new contexts. Giovanni Sartori's work on conceptual “traveling” and conceptual “stretching” provides helpful guidance in addressing this fundamental task of comparative analysis. Yet Sartori's framework draws upon what may be called classical categorization, which views the relation among categories in terms of a taxonomic hierarchy, with each category having clear boundaries and defining properties shared by all members. We examine the challenge to this framework presented by two types of nonclassical categories: family resemblances and radial categories. With such categories, the overly strict application of a classical framework can lead to abandoning to category prematurely or to modifying it inappropriately. We discuss solutions to these problems, using examples of how scholars have adapted their categories in comparative research on democracy and authoritarianism.