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Applying Ragin's Crisp and Fuzzy Set QCA to Large Datasets: Social Class and Educational Achievement in the National Child Development Study

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  • Barry Cooper

Abstract

The paper explores the use of Charles Ragin's Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) in both its crisp and fuzzy set versions in the study of the relations between social class origin, sex, ‘ability’ and subsequent educational achievement. The work reported is part of a larger ongoing project which is employing QCA to compare these relations within two birth cohorts. Here data are used from the British National Child Development Study, i.e. from children born in 1958. The paper has a methodological focus, bringing out the strengths but also the difficulties that arise when employing QCA with a large dataset of this type. In particular, the problem of calibrating membership in fuzzy sets in a context where detailed case knowledge is not available is illustrated. It is also shown how the use of gradually increasing thresholds with Ragin's fs/QCA software can bring out the relative importance of various factors in accounting for achievement. The QCA-based analysis suggests that the processes of educational attainment can, at best, only be seen as partly falling under a ‘meritocratic’ description. It is also hoped that this paper will serve as a useful introduction to the potential of QCA for readers not yet familiar with it.

Suggested Citation

  • Barry Cooper, 2005. "Applying Ragin's Crisp and Fuzzy Set QCA to Large Datasets: Social Class and Educational Achievement in the National Child Development Study," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 10(2), pages 1-20, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:socres:v:10:y:2005:i:2:p:1-20
    DOI: 10.5153/sro.1068
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Geoff Payne, 1987. "Mobility and Social Class," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Employment and Opportunity, chapter 8, pages 189-192, Palgrave Macmillan.
    2. Ragin, Charles C., 2000. "Fuzzy-Set Social Science," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226702773, October.
    3. repec:ucp:bkecon:9780226702766 is not listed on IDEAS
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    Cited by:

    1. Barry Cooper & Judith Glaesser, 2016. "Analysing necessity and sufficiency with Qualitative Comparative Analysis: how do results vary as case weights change?," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 50(1), pages 327-346, January.
    2. Keming Yang, 2018. "Causal conditions for loneliness: a set-theoretic analysis on an adult sample in the UK," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 52(2), pages 685-701, March.
    3. Wu, Chih-Wen, 2016. "The performance impact of social media in the chain store industry," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 5310-5316.
    4. Li‐Fei Chen & Donna Larissa Khuangga, 2021. "Configurational paths of employee reactions to corporate social responsibility: An organizational justice perspective," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 389-403, January.
    5. Judith Glaesser, 2022. "Relative educational poverty: conceptual and empirical issues," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 2803-2820, August.
    6. Barry Cooper & Judith Glaesser, 2008. "How has Educational Expansion Changed the Necessary and Sufficient Conditions for Achieving Professional, Managerial and Technical Class Positions in Britain? A Configurational Analysis," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 13(3), pages 29-47, May.

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