2025/05/22 by Raúl Pacheco-Vega · 1 voice
Business, Management and Accounting · Decision Sciences · Social Sciences · #Evaluation and Performance Assessment #Management and Organizational Studies #Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research
paper · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780192868282.013.73
openalex publication_date 2025/05/22 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
Abstract Much of what has been written about how to develop research questions has focused on how to frame and design a project in a way that makes it relatively easy and straightforward to develop. Less has been talked about how we can ask research questions that are methodologically rigorous, and at the same time, valuable and meaningful for society. Using examples from my own research and that of a sample of political scientists, this chapter shows the importance of crafting research questions that blend engaged pluralism and methodological pluralism. This chapter offers a set of guidelines (specifically the puzzling-puzzle construction approach) that might help us think through the process of developing research questions in political science that are socially relevant and meaningful for a changing world. This chapter also offers a conceptual framework through which we can develop research projects, and emphasize the role of research questions in the framework.