Anecdotal Evidence: The Role of Narrative in Process Tracing

Abstract

This paper critically discusses the status of narrative in political science methods. After reviewing the literature for existing definitions of the concept of narrative, it provides a new definition that serves as the background for the subsequent discussion of the merits of narrative as a presentational mode for process tracing analyses. It is argued that narrative is particularly suitable because of its temporality and flexibility. While there is no agreement in the literature about the attributes of a ‘good’ process tracing narrative, a number of standards can be formulated. A process tracing narrative should be judged in terms of theory-guidedness, precision, adequacy, depth and closure. There are, however, at least four weaknesses of the narrative form, namely, the problem of temporal vs. causal order, agency bias and the problem of emplotment. While there are no serious alternative to narrative when it comes to presenting process tracing analyses, some presentational forms can complement narrative and help to mitigate its weaknesses.

Keywords: methods, process tracing, narrative, qualitative