The active degree of written questions in the Macau Legislative Assembly: a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA)

Abstract

PurposeThis study intends to explore the configuration that affects the active degree of written questions in the Macau Legislative Assembly.Design/methodology/approachThis study takes the members elected by the sixth Legislative Assembly of Macau as samples and uses the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis method. Five conditional factors are discussed, including multiple concurrent factors and complex causal mechanisms, which lead to the difference in the active degree of written questions.FindingsThe main conclusions are as follows: (1) Not Serving in the government is a necessary condition for a high active degree of the written question, and (2) The driving mechanism of a high active degree of written question can be divided into two paths. Among them, direct election into the Legislative Assembly is the crucial factor.Originality/valueTraditional research mainly uses quantitative research methods. This study uses qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), which is a hybrid method designed to bridge the qualitative (case-oriented) and quantitative (variable-oriented) research gap.