Doing Archival Research in Political Science By Scott A. Frisch, ...

congressional scholars have long used committee assignments as an indicator of members’ preferences, the reasoning being that if a member sat on a particular committee, that was the committee on which the member preferred to sit. That is, of course, circular logic, but collecting committee request data, which give insight into members’ actual preferences, was considered “too difficult”—until it got done, that is (Frisch and Kelly 2006). Null findings are more likely to result from using inappropriate data—that is to say, using existing data sets that were built to answer different questions than those that most scholars would like to test.

Second, doing archival research (as we argue in the following section) helps with theory building. Direct engagement with the data allows the researcher to explore alternative explanations for null findings, more accurately specify models, refine existing theories, and build more satisfying theories. The result is more interesting, satisfying, and “positive,” and thus easier-to-publish, findings. Anyone who is familiar with Richard Fenno’s work on Congress—although it is not archival in nature but faces similar challenges and opportunity costs—will easily agree that “thick description” can yield rich theoretical findings. These findings push the discipline in new directions by building as well as testing theories and by describing—in detail—the behavioral reality that is attendant to political institutions and exhibited in politicians’ actions and choices.

We are not making any guarantees here. We are simply arguing that the odds, based on logic and experience, favor a more profitable and successful analysis.

Reason Two: The Information Sought May Not Be Found

It is certainly possible that one could make a trip to an archive and find little to no material that bears on one’s research question. It is possible. And that would be bad. But it is fairly preventable. Careful work prior to the trip aimed at avoiding the problem will prevent one from making unnecessary trips. The advice offered throughout this book, and especially in chapter 10, will help researchers to avoid fruitless journeys.