Concept-structure choices can be tested empirically by varying substitutability.

Evidence

Thus the weakest-link claim can be translated into one concerning substitutability and concept structure. If the weakest-link hypothesis is correct then the more substitutable the dyadic measure of democracy the less it should be correlated with international military conflict. Chapter 5 employs measures of dyadic democracy that vary in their degree of substitutability. It examines whether in statistical fact the weakest link is better than other alternative concept structures that involve more substitutability, such as the maximum or the mean. — Gary Goertz, Social Science Concepts, 121

Categorization

• SEED: Angle: measurement design as an underrated site of theoretical dispute — show how a coding convention quietly smuggles in a causal theory of dyadic conflict.