8/22/2017

QUALITATIVE
RESEARCH

Case Studies
Qualitative Research Methods

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Definition
• Case study refers to the collection and presentation
of detailed information about a particular participant
or small group, frequently including the accounts of
subjects themselves.
• A form of qualitative descriptive research, the case
study looks intensely at an individual or small
participant pool, drawing conclusions only about that
participant or group and only in that specific context.

Definition
• Researchers do not focus on the
discovery of a universal, generalizable
truth, nor do they typically look for
cause-effect relationships; instead,
emphasis is placed on exploration and
description.

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Phenomenon
• Life/living • Anything that which we
• Dying/death know exists but which
• Sickness we can not fully
understand or
• Happiness comprehend or
• Ghost/spirits describe
• Caring
• Hatred
• Phobia

Case Studies
• Defined
Bounded system example:
Qualitative study: How older people learn
to use a computer

Case study: How one older person learns

to use a computer
- one particular program
- one classroom of learners

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Case Studies
• History
 Roots in anthropology, sociology and
psychology

 During 60s & 70s researchers looked for

alternatives to standard qualitative
methods
- Evolved during the 80s as accepted
method

Case Studies
• History
 Prominently used by physicians, historians,
social workers, teachers, etc., as a learning
tool:
Through careful examination and discussion
of various cases, “[researchers] learn to identify
actual problems, to recognize key players and
their agenda, and to become aware of those
aspects of the situation that contribute to the
problem. . ."
(Merseth, 1991 in
http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/research/casestudy/com2a3.cfm )

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Case Studies
• 3 Characteristics
1.Particularistic: focuses on a
particular situation, event,
program or phenomenon

2.Descriptive: the end product is a

rich, thick description of the
phenomenon being studied

Case Studies
• 3 Characteristics
3. Heuristic: the cases studied illuminate
the reader’s understanding of the
phenomenon under study

- brings about the discovery of

new meanings
- extend the reader’s experience
- confirm what is already known

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Case Studies
• Why Use Case Studies?
Knowledge is:
- More concrete
- More contextual
- More developed by reader
interpretation
- Based more on reference populations
determined by the reader

Case Studies
• Why Use Case Studies?
Depends on what the researcher
wants to know

1. Specific “how” and “why”

questions
2. When you have less control of
the events

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Case Studies
• Why Use Case Studies?
Depends on what the researcher
wants to know
3. When variables are so
embedded in the situation that
they’re impossible to identify
ahead of time
4. Uniqueness of the situation

Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Historical:
The study of the development of a
particular phenomenon over time
1. Holistic analysis and description
from a historical perspective
2. Preferred when there’s virtually
no access or control
(i.e. an evening school for working
adults in the early 1900s)

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Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Observational:
The primary data collection method is
participant observation
supplemented with formal and
informal interviews

(i.e., the staff break room of an org)

Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Illustrative Case Studies:
Primarily descriptive studies
1. Utilizes one or two instances of an
event to show what a situation is
like
2. Tries to make the unfamiliar familiar
and to give readers a common
language about the topic in question

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Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Exploratory (or pilot) Case Studies:
Condensed case studies performed before
implementing a large scale investigation
1. Basic function is to help identify
questions and select types of
measurement prior to the main
investigation
2. Primary pitfall is that initial findings may
seem convincing enough to be released
prematurely as conclusions

Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Cumulative Case Studies:
Serves to aggregate information from
several sites collected at different
times
1. The collection of past studies will
allow for greater generalization
without additional cost or time being
expended on new, possibly repetitive
studies

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Case Studies
• Types of Case Studies
Critical Instance Case Studies:
Examines one or more sites for either the
purpose of examining a situation of
unique interest with little to no interest
in generalizability, or to call into
question or challenge a highly
generalized or universal assertion
1. Useful for answering cause and effect
questions

Case Studies
• Steps
1. Determine topic
2. Determine type of case study method
used and mode of data collection
- Documents
- Archival records
- Interviews
- Direct observation
- Participant observation
- Artifacts

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Case Studies
• Steps
3. Select participants
4. Collect data
5. Data Analysis
- Typically done holistically or through
coding
6. Write up report

Case Studies
• Steps
Different ways of presentation:
• Replace narrative sections with a series
of answers to open-ended questions
• Present "skimmer's" summaries at
beginning of each section
• Incorporate headlines that encapsulate
information from text

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Case Studies
• Steps
Different ways of presentation:
• Prepare analytic summaries with
supporting data appendixes
• Present data in colorful and/or unique
graphic representations
• Prepare specialized condensations for
appropriate groups

Case Studies
• Strengths & Weaknesses

 The merits of any research design are

inherently linked to the rationale for
choosing that particular method!

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Case Studies
• Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths:
1. Anchored in real-life situations
2. Holistic account of the phenomenon
3. Advances a field’s knowledge base
4. Flexible
5. Contextualization of the phenomenon
6. See slide #10

Case Studies
• Strengths & Weaknesses
Weaknesses:
1. Difficult to generalize
2. Some say it’s too subjective
3. May be costly
- hard to rationalize cost in a budget
request
4. Some ethical considerations
- financial - researcher integrity
5. Time consuming

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DATA ANALYSIS

• As the information is collected,

researchers strive to make sense of their
data. Generally, researchers interpret
their data in one of two ways: holistically
or through coding. Holistic analysis does
not attempt to break the evidence into
parts, but rather to draw conclusions
based on the text as a whole.

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Data analysis
• However, composition researchers commonly
interpret their data by coding, that is by
systematically searching data to identify
and/or categorize specific observable actions
or characteristics. These observable actions
then become the key variables in the study.
Sharan Merriam (1988) suggests seven
analytic frameworks for the organization and
presentation of data:

• The role of participants.

• The network analysis of formal and informal
exchanges among groups.
• Historical.
• Thematical.
• Resources.
• Ritual and symbolism.
• Critical incidents that challenge or reinforce
fundamental beliefs, practices, and values.
•

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• These serve to aggregate information from

several sites collected at different times. The
idea behind these studies is the collection of
past studies will allow for greater
generalization without additional cost or time
being expended on new, possibly repetitive
studies.

• There are two purposes of these frameworks:

to look for patterns among the data and to
look for patterns that give meaning to the
case study.
• Most researchers begin their case studies
expecting to look for particular observable
characteristics and it is not unusual for key
variables to emerge during data collection.

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