A Criterial Framework for Concept Evaluation in Social Practice and Scholarship

This article responds to the argued lack of clearly articulated, consistent, and agreed criteria that might be used by researchers for determining the adequacy of a given concept for a given task. It does so by describing the development of a framework of such criteria, presenting that framework, an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological methods & research 2020-08, Vol.49 (3), p.719-741, Article 0049124118769104
Main Authors: Howie, Peter C., Bagnall, Richard G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Concepts
Differentiation
Evaluation Criteria
Generalizability
Psychodrama
Psychotherapy
Social Science Research
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Summary:This article responds to the argued lack of clearly articulated, consistent, and agreed criteria that might be used by researchers for determining the adequacy of a given concept for a given task. It does so by describing the development of a framework of such criteria, presenting that framework, and illustratively applying it to the evaluation of the concept of warm-up in psychodrama. The framework comprises eight criteria in three categories: the intrinsic qualities of a concept (the criteria of clarity, comprehensiveness, parsimony, and resonance), the contextualization of a concept (differentiation and connectedness), and its application (epistemic utility and practical utility). Using the framework to evaluate the concept of warm-up in the context of its use in psychodrama suggests its potential to make significant differentiations. It is argued that this framework may contribute to evaluating other concepts in other contexts, although the extent of such generalizability remains to be ascertained.
ISSN:0049-1241
1552-8294
DOI:10.1177/0049124118769104