Concept structure should determine methodology, not the reverse.
Evidence
I use the example of democracy to stress that theory, that is, concepts, should drive methodology: we must ο¬rst think clearly about the substance and structure of our concepts and then we can begin to think about how to validly operationalize that theory into a quantitative measure. β Gary Goertz, Social Science Concepts, 115
Categorization
- APHORISMS: Reads as durable methodological advice: clarify the substance and structure of a concept before reaching for a measurement apparatus.