Comparative Research Design - The Politics of Water Institutional Reform in Neopatrimonial States - page 42

people whose constructions of realities and definitions of problems have an impact on policies,
solution strategies, and their implementation. Consequently, qualitative methods comprise
adequate approaches for empirical research and data analysis. They are the best suitable means
to uncover the subjective Weltanschauung of the actors their beliefs, views, values and its
embedding in the specific context (Lamnek 2002; Mayring 1992: 11f; Mayer 2002: 21 26). In
addition, I consider qualitative methods to be more feasible in the context of developing, non
democratic and transitional states rather than quantitative ones. It goes without saying that
researchers striving to apply qualitative methods properly also face difficulties, but these can be
controlled better by the researcher as qualitative methods are more context sensitive (Lentz
1992; Kandiyoti 1999). Hann, Humphrey, and Verdery (2002: 20) also stress that ethnological
research is best suited to capture macro social phenomena in post socialist countries as its
technique of in depth field research can contribute to an enhanced understanding of these
societies especially in times of institutional instability.
Concerning the qualitative methods applied in this thesis, several methods were triangu
lated: semi structured expert interviews, open interviews, participant observation, informal
conversations, group discussions, and transect walks. Triangulation in the original sense of the
term as used by land surveying refers to the measurement of one point from two different
perspectives (Flick 2004: 309f). Its popularity in Social Sciences has grown in recent years and
has led to a confusing and blurry usage of the term. While some use it exclusively to describe
the equal combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, others also use it to refer to the
combination of different qualitative methods or even merely for different perspectives within
one method, e.g. for different types of questions asked in one interview. Despite these uncer
tainties there is a basic argument which justifies the use of the term 'triangulation' and instead
of simply speaking of a combination of methods: Triangulation allots an equal status to all
methods used. Simple combination, in contrast, can also mean that one method has to com
plement another method (e.g. a qualitative pre test for a quantitative survey). With triangula
tion, no method has priority over others. It is not the aim of triangulation to reach more vali
dation or objectivity, but to reach a more differentiated understanding of complexity (Lamnek
1995: 245 257; Flick 2004). 22 I use this term to express that I do not consider the half
standardized method of the expert interview as superior to the non standardized methods, or
the latter ones as pure enrichment of the first, but that they are equal. The methods used will
now be briefly introduced.
Expert Interviews
One main instrument of data gathering was the expert interview (Gläser, Laudel 2004; Pickel,
Pickel 2003; Meuser, Nagel 2002; Bogner, Menz 2002; Mayer 2002). As expert interviews are
an often used, but hardly theoretically reflected method in comparative politics as well as in
political science in general (Meuser, Nagel 2002; Pickel, Pickel 2003), it seems useful to pay
some attention to the advantages and disadvanages of this method.
The semi structured expert interview aims to discover the problem perceptions and social
constructions of reality of those that define policy problems and their solution. In contrast to
other forms of qualitative interviews, the interviewed person is not of interest as a person, but
as an expert for a specific issue. Meuser and Nagel in their seminal article on expert interviews
state that if one aims to analyze relevant rules beyond written prescriptions, tacit knowledge,
and unwritten laws, then there is no alternative to this type of interview (Meuser, Nagel 2002:
22 For a critical assessment of the limitations of combining methods, especially ethnographic methods with other
approaches, see Schatz 2007.