Knowledge of causal mechanisms should determine how concepts are defined.

Evidence

Figure 1.1 includes an arrow from causation to semantics. To state the obvious, concepts and measures are used in causal mechanisms, hypotheses, and theories. Issues of causation must, or at least should, play a role in determining the semantics of concepts. For example, in chapter 3 a guideline states that one should use features of causal mechanisms to conceptualize and define concepts. Not surprisingly, this also makes the methodology presented here a realist one. Concepts need to tap into the workings of the world; that needs to inform conceptualization. Hence it is completely appropriate to use the epigraph from Nancy Cartwright to begin this section. Valid concepts identify causal features of the world that constitute their causal powers. — Gary Goertz, Social Science Concepts and Measurement, 62

Categorization

• DEEPTHINKING: Inverts the usual sequence: instead of defining terms then hunting for causes, the causal mechanism itself dictates the concept’s semantics — a paradigm-shifting methodological stance for anyone doing measurement work.
• XREF: Echoes the measurement-validity debates in the reader’s notes on construct validity and latent variables, where indicators are chosen by their causal link to the underlying construct.