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Case Selection and the Comparative Method: Introducing the Case Selector

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2026

Timothy Prescott and
Brian R. Urlacher
Timothy Prescott*
Affiliation:
Political Science Department, University of North Dakota, 293 Centennial Drive, Grand Forks, ND, USA
Brian R. Urlacher*
Affiliation:
Political Science Department, University of North Dakota, 293 Centennial Drive, Grand Forks, ND, USA
*
E-mail: timothy.prescott.und@gmail.com
E-mail: brian.urlacher@und.edu
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Abstract

We introduce a web application, the Case Selector (http://und.edu/faculty/brian.urlacher), that facilitates comparative case study research designs by creating an exhaustive comparison of cases from a dataset on the dependent, independent, and control variables specified by the user. This application was created to aid in systematic and transparent case selection so that researchers can better address the charge that cases are ‘cherry picked.’ An examination of case selection in a prominent study of rebel behaviour in civil war is then used to illustrate different applications of the Case Selector.

Keywords

comparative methodcase selectionsoftwarequalitative methods

Information

Type
Research
Information
European Political Science , Volume 17 , Issue 3 , September 2018, pp. 422 - 436
Copyright
Copyright © 2017 European Consortium for Political Research

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Footnotes

*

Corresponding author.

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