POL218Y5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: International Relations, Dependent And Independent Variables
6 Apr 2020
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Document Summary
It focuses on domestic and intra-state politics. It looks within the state and the ways in which they function; distinct from international relations which focuses on inter-state relations. Usually we are not comparing aspects of states like size, population, etc. but rather comparing characteristics and their causes and effects (cause-and-effect relationships). In other words, we will be comparing and analyzing the relationship between variables. The independent variables are hypothesized to cause change in dependent variables. For example, a greater population equals greater wealth. The population is the independent variable and wealth is a dependent variable. We need to compare because we need to see if the causal relationship we are claiming exists, exists in many cases. The prime reasons for comparing cases: comparison control they control (verify or falsify) whether generalizations hold across the cases to which they apply - sartori. Apples and oranges may seem incomparable but it truly depends on what question we are asking.
