5. Analytics and Findings for Overall Competency

As Chap. 4 describes, QCA uses Boolean algebra and set relationships, rather than correlations between dependent and independent variables. This research investigates the presence or absence of four treatment conditions associated with high decision competence and or decision confidence. The treatment antecedents include (1) group interaction, (2) GBS simulations, (3) DA dissent and (4) competency/incompetency training. The calibration of all antecedent conditions and the outcomes (occurrence of the two phenomena of decision competence OR decision confidence) are defined and calibrated as fuzzy sets, with the resulting membership scores reflecting the level of membership to the set, using theoretical and substantive knowledge of the cases (Ragin, 2008c) as set out in Chaps. 3 and 4. Both presence and absence of antecedent conditions are considered in the configurations of causal conditions. For this study there are two types of antecedent conditions: (2) treatment antecedents and (2) measured antecedents, and these are set out in Table 5.1 below.