@article {8336,
	title = {Systematic process analysis: when and how to use it},
	journal = {European Management Review},
	volume = {3},
	year = {2006},
	pages = {24-31},
	abstract = {Challenging the contention that statistical methods applied to large numbers of cases invariably provide better grounds for causal inference, this article explores the value of a method of systematic process analysis that can be applied in a small number of cases. It distinguishes among three modes of explanation - historically specific, multivariate, and theory-oriented - and argues that systematic process analysis has special value for developing theory-oriented explanations. It outlines the steps required to perform such analysis well and illustrates them with reference to Owen{\textquoteright}s investigation of the {\textquoteright}democratic peace{\textquoteright}. Comparing the results available from this kind of method with those from statistical analysis, it examines the conditions under which each method is warranted. Against conceptions of the {\textquoteright}comparative method{\textquoteright} which imply that small-n case-studies provide weak grounds for causal inference, it argues that the intensive examination of a small number of cases can be an appropriate research design for testing such inferences.},
	author = {Peter A. Hall}
}
