Young People's Educational Careers in England and Germany : Integrating Survey and Interview Analysis Via Qualitative Comparative Analysis

In this comparative study of young people's educational careers in England and Germany, individual factors, social class, school and country characteristics are shown jointly to shape these careers through mutually reinforcing processes. Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is combined with interview analysis to explore generative mechanisms. Through a comparative study of young people's educational careers in England and Germany, this book explores the range of influences which shape educational careers such as the individual talents and interests of young people, their social class and background, as well as school and country characteristics. Methodologically, the book develops a mixed methods approach that utilises Charles Ragin's increasingly popular Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) to examine cross-case analyses of secondary survey data alongside within-case process-tracing analyses of interview data to establish causal understanding of educational careers. International comparison adds another dimension, exploiting the significant differences between the two countries' school and university systems. The book therefore offers both a contemporary account of young people's educational careers and decision-making as well as a practical contribution to ongoing debates concerning the establishment of causal and explanatory knowledge in the non-experimental social sciences Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-12 Description and Explanation: Methodological Rationale....Pages 13-28 Qualitative Comparative Analysis....Pages 29-38 Overview of the Project....Pages 39-62 Which Young People in Germany are in a Gymnasium at the Age of 17? A Typological Analysis....Pages 63-88 Secondary Schooling Careers in England....Pages 89-121 What Types of Young People Are Bound for Higher Education at the Age of 17?....Pages 122-144 Using In-Depth Case Studies to Explore Causal Mechanisms in Detail....Pages 145-163 Summary and Conclusions....Pages 164-176 Back Matter....Pages 177-197