The Methods of Political Analysis field provides instruction in the methodology of political-science research and in the skills necessary thereto. Experiential activities may also play a part in a methods program, with fieldwork supplementing formal coursework in some cases. Coursework parallels the ways in which research methods are applied within the department, with offerings in research design, data collection, quantitative and qualitative methodology, and formal theory, including work in game and complexity theory. The department's faculty are leaders in the use of research methods of many kinds, applying them to problems that span other subfields in the discipline and connect with other departments and units at the university.
