case study research method
DESCRIPTION
case studyTRANSCRIPT
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Vladimir Ryabov, PhD, Principal Lecturer
” M E T H O D O L O G Y ” C O U R S E , B M 0 7
CASE STUDYRESEARCH METHOD
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LOGIC OF CASE STUDY
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
Based on R.Yin, 2009, Case Study Research, 4th Ed., SAGE.
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WHEN TO USE?
• “How” and “Why” research questions
• Researcher has little control over events
• Focus is on contemporary phenomenon within
real-life context
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GOALS OF CASE STUDY
• Exploratory
• Descriptive
• Explanatory
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CRITICISM
• Rigor of case study research
• Little basis for scientific generalization
• Too long, result in massive, unreadable documents
• Can’t directly address causal relationships
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DEFINITION(R.YIN, 2009, Case Study Research, 4th Ed., SAGE. p.18)
1. A case study is an empirical enquiry that• investigates a contemporary phenomenon in depth and
within its real-life context, especially when
• the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not
clearly evident.2. The case study inquiry
• copes with the technically distinctive situation in whichthere will be many more variables of interest than datapoints, and as one result
• relies on multiple sources of evidence, with data needing toconverge in a triangulating fashion, and as another result
• benefits from the prior development of theoreticalpropositions to guide data collection and analysis.
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NUMBER OF CASES
• Single vs. Multiple
• Comparative case method (distinctive form ofmultiple case study)
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DESIGN
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
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RESEARCH DESIGN OF CASE STUDY
• Research design – logic linking data to be collectedto the initial questions of study
• Logical connection between questions and findings
• Example: inter-organizational study
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COMPONENTS OF RESEARCH DESIGN
• Questions of a study
• Propositions
• Unit(s) of analysis
• Logic linking the data to the propositions
• Criteria for interpreting the findings
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ROLE OF THEORY IN DESIGN
• Theoretical framework for a study
• E.g., organizational theories (theories ofbureaucracy, organizational structure and
functions; excellence in organizationalperformance, and inter-organizational partnerships)
• Generalizations: statistical and analytic
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CRITERIA FOR JUDGING THEQUALITY OF RESEARCH DESIGN
• Construct validity: identifying correct operational measuresfor the concepts being studied
• Internal validity: seeking to establish a causal relationship,whereby certain conditions are believed to lead to otherconditions
• External validity: defining the domain to which a study’s
findings can be generalized
• Reliability: demonstrating that the operations of a study – such as the data collection procedures – can berepeated, the same results
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CONSTRUCT VALIDITY
• Problem:
• Operational set of measures: objectivity vs. subjectivity
• Tactics:
• Use multiple sources of evidence
• Establish chain of evidence
• Have key informants review draft case study report
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INTERNAL VALIDITY
• Problem:
• Mainly a concern for explanatory case studies
•Making inferences in a case study
• Tactics:
• Do pattern matching
• Do explanation building
• Address rival explanation
• Use logic model
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EXTERNAL VALIDITY
• Problem:
• Is this study generalizable? This is a major concern in casestudies!
• Tactics:
• Use theory in single-case studies
• Use replication logic in multiple-case studies
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RELIABILITY
• Problem:
• To minimize errors and biases in a study
• Tactics:
• Use case study protocol
• Develop case study database
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PREPARING FOR DATA COLLECTION
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
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DESIRED SKILLS
• Ask good questions
• Be a good ”listener”
• Be adaptive and flexible
• Have a firm grasp of the issues being studied
• Be unbiased by preconceived notions
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PROTOCOL OF INVESTIGATION
• Major way to increase the reliability of case study
• Guides the investigator in the data collection
• General content of a case study protocol:
• an overview of the project
• field procedures
• case study questions
• a guide for case study report
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COLLECTING CASE STUDY EVIDENCE
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
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SOURCES OF EVIDENCE
• Documentation
• Archival records
• Interviews
• Direct observation
• Participant observation
• Physical artefacts
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DOCUMENTATION
• Strengths:
• Stable, unobtrusive, exact, broad coverage
• Weaknesses:
• Retrievability, biased selectivity, reporting bias, and access
• Use of documents: to corroborate and augmentevidence from other sources
• An Internet search prior to field visit
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ARCHIVAL RECORDS
• Strengths:
• Same as for documents
• Precise and usually quantitative
• Weaknesses:
• Same as for documents
• Accessibility due to privacy reasons
• Often take a form of computer files and records
• E.g., organizational records (budget or personnel records)
• Usefulness of archival records vary: from essential to passiverelevance
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INTERVIEWS
• Strengths:
• Targeted, insightful
• Weaknesses:
• Bias due to poorly articulated questions
• Response bias
• Inaccuracies due to poor recall
• Reflexivity
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DIRECT OBSERVATIONS
• Strengths:
• Reality, contextual
• Weaknesses:
• Time-consuming, selectivity, reflexivity, and cost
• Observations of meetings, factory work, classrooms,etc.
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PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION
• Strengths:
• Same as for direct observation
•
Insightful into interpersonal behavior and motives
• Weaknesses:
• Same as for direct observation
• Bias due to participant-observer’s manipulation of events
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PHYSICAL ARTEFACTS
• Strengths:
• Insightful into cultural features and technical operations
• Weaknesses:
• Selectivity and availability
• E.g., technological device, tool or instrument, awork of art
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PRINCIPLE 1: USE MULTIPLESOURCES OF EVIDENCE
• Use of multiple sources is a strength of a case study
• Triangulation -> findings are more convincing andaccurate
• Convergence and nonconvergence of sources
• Prerequisites for using multiple sources: costs,knowledge in different data collection methods
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PRINCIPLE 2: CREATE A CASESTUDY DATABASE
• Way of organizing and documenting the datacollected
• Increases reliability of research
• Database includes:
• case study notes (e.g., results of interviews, observations)
• case study documents
• tabular materials (e.g., survey and other quantitative data)
• narratives (open-ended answers to the questions)
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PRINCIPLE 3: MAINTAIN A CHAINOF EVIDENCE
• To allow an external observer to follow thederivation of any evidence from initial researchquestions to ultimate conclusions
• Not only the actual evidence but thecircumstances of its collection
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ANALYSIS
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
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GENERAL STRATEGIES
• Relying on theoretical propositions
• Developing a case description
• Using both qualitative and quantitative data
• Examining rival explanations
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1. PATTERN MATCHING
• Compare an empirically based pattern with apredicted one
• Can help to strengthen the internal validity
• A pattern might be related to the variables of thestudy
• Example of pattern analysis
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2. EXPLANATION BUILDING
• Analysis of a case study by building an explanationabout the case
• Mainly relevant to explanatory case studies
• Explanation building occurs most often in anarrative form
• Reflect theoretically significant propositions
• Iterative nature of explanation building
• Potential problems with explanation building
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3. TIME-SERIES ANALYSIS
• The ability to trace changes over time is a strengthof case studies
• Single dependent or independent variable
• Statistical tests are used
• Complex time series analysis
•
Chronologies
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4. LOGIC MODELS
• The model stipulates a complex chain of eventsover an extended period of time
• Repeated cause-effect-cause-effect patterns
• Can be considered as a form of pattern matching
• Matching empirically observed events totheoretically predicted events
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5. CROSS CASE SYNTHESIS
• Applied specifically to the analysis of multiple cases
• Cases for synthesis might come from differentstudies
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REPORTING CASE STUDY
PLAN DESIGN
PREPARE
COLLECT
ANALYZESHARE
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ISSUES IN REPORTING
• There is no any stereotypic form
• Targeting case study reports
• Structures for case study reports:
• Linear-analytic (for all types)• Comparative (for all types)
• Chronological (for all types)
• Theory-building (for explanatory and exploratory)
• Suspense (only for explanatory)
• Unsequenced (only for descriptive)
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REFERENCES
• R. Yin, 2009, Case Study Research: design andmethods, 4th Ed., SAGE.