Master 2025/2026

Methodology and Research Methods of Political Science

Type: Elective course (Politics. Economics. Philosophy)

Delivered by: School of Politics and Governance

When: 1 year, 2, 3 module

Open to: students of all HSE University campuses

Instructors: Evgeny Sedashov

Language: English

Contact hours: 64

Course Syllabus

Abstract

This course serves as an introduction to quantitative political methodology. We will first cover the general issues related to research design in political science. We will discuss problems of measurement and operationalization, validity and reliability of measurements, and the basics of writing research papers. After that we will proceed to the discussion of statistical methods and linear regression. We will start from first principles and gradually build skills required for thorough understanding of quantitative methods used in modern political science. Finally, we will also cover some of the topics from causal inference. The class strives to maintain the balance between building theoretical understanding and practical implementation of specific methods. I strongly believe that one is impossible without the other. On the one hand, understanding theoretical underpinnings of a specific method is pivotal for realizing the limits of its use. On the other hand, the theory separated from practical implementation tends to be a bit dry, so getting acquainted with data management and actual implementation of different models is also important.