Proposition-based Theory Specification

Glöckner and Betsch (2011) suggest that a well-specified theory should consist of a finite set of clear-cut propositions expressing relationships or causal effects among concepts of the theory, which together fully describe the theory. When specifying unidirectional causal effects, a proposition consists of two elements: antecedent and consequence (written as unambiguous if-then statements). If a theory includes mediating mechanisms, they should be presented as multiple (interconnected) propositions. If the antecedent or consequence of a proposition includes multiple concepts, they are linked through logical (AND, OR, etc.) operations. Crucially, all concepts appearing in the set of a theory’s propositions have to be defined in an unambiguous and testable manner. A good theory specification should also describe how to measure and manipulate these concepts; i.e., it should outline their operationalization. Lastly, the boundary conditions for the theory should be explicitly stated as auxiliary assumptions. These auxiliary assumptions hold information regarding the subgroup of people or situations the theory applies to, thus concerning the trade-off between a theory’s specificity and generalizability. They are also necessary to isolate the effects of interest and rule out potentially confounding factors. Lastly, a good theory specification should identify critical properties allowing for theory falsification.