Rating scales are ubiquitous in the social sciences, yet may present practical difficulties when response formats change over time or vary across surveys. To allow researchers to pool rating data across alternative question formats, the article provides a generalization of the ordered logit model that accommodates multiple scale formats in the…

Spatial regression models provide the opportunity to analyze spatial data and spatial processes. Yet, several model specifications can be used, all assuming different types of spatial dependence. This study summarizes the most commonly used spatial regression models and offers a comparison of their performance by using Monte Carlo experiments. In…

This article demonstrates how a technique called Agent-Based Modelling can address a significant challenge for effective interdisciplinarity. Different disciplines and research methods make divergent assertions about what a satisfactory explanation requires. However, without a unified framework analysing the implications of these differences…

The Schwarz or Bayesian information criterion (BIC) is one of the most widely used tools for model comparison in social science research. The BIC, however, is not suitable for evaluating models with order constraints on the parameters of interest. This article explores two extensions of the BIC for evaluating order-constrained models, one where a…

When comparing social science phenomena through a time perspective, absolute and relative difference (RD) are the two typical presentation formats used to communicate interpretations to the audience, while time distance (TD) is the least frequently used of such formats. This article argues that the chosen presentation format is extremely important…

Discusses why the probability model of integration (P-type measure), which describes the relative isolation of groups, predicts perceptions of segregation more accurately than the more commonly used index of dissimilarity. The P-type measure is applied in a reexamination of intercity differences and temporal changes in segregation between 1960 and…

The structure of a society's status hierarchy is usually investigated through the analysis of occupational mobility, that is, the association of fathers' and sons' occupations. This research study introduces another indicator that is conceptually similar but empirically distinct: the association of husbands' and wives' occupational statuses.…

A new paradigm of multi-dimensional rural development has emerged which advocates a broader conception of the rurality where the rural is no longer the monopoly of the farmer. This new, broader paradigm needs to be reflected in the "methodology" of social scientific research, both generic and applied. In this paper we are primarily…

The concept of structure is recast as an instantaneous correspondence between an infrastructure, a sociostructure, and a superstructure--manifestations of collective life juxtaposed through technological solutions, political exchanges, and social interpretations involving organizations. Ultimately, structuring is a dialectical unfolding of…

This study explores whether an ecological, an adaptation, or a random organizational action perspective more appropriately describes the impact of organizational change in a population of voluntary social service organizations. Results indicate a variability in effects of changes on mortality, which may be explained by their location. (CJH)

Argues that research in plural societies requires a model which reflects an ideology of cultural pluralism in that it respects each group's independence and uniqueness. Proposes a transethnic model for comparing ethnic units in polyethnic societies. Discusses guidelines for assessing comparability, group independence, and group cultural…

The microcomputer offers social science field researchers a valuable tool for managing qualitative research data. In addition to the flexibility and efficiency of the microcomputer, the logic governing its programming and operation imposes a framework on the research process which necessitates that research decisions and strategies be explicit and…

Examines a statewide sample of Utah residents and their elected state representatives in terms of their respective support of land use planning over several months before, during, and after the defeat of a state land use act. Finds that models developed from classic democratic theory are generally ineffective in accounting for the relationships…

A framework and method of a three-country comparative study on the process of participative decision-making are described. Research methods, models, and instruments are developed in the context of a longitudinal design. The major hypotheses relate to the situationally determined relation between power decentralization, skill utilization, and…

Discusses membership and development in three international studies subcultures, the Council on Foreign Relations, the quantitative international politics (QIP), and comparative foreign policy (CFP) groups, noting that scientific progress occurs when a subculture transmits research findings into the larger community of scholars. Specifies…