Case Studies

• In all of the business disciplines, case studies used in

many different ways. The two most popular uses of
case studies in business school are, first in teaching,
and, second, an research.
• In teaching, case studies are tremendously helpful to
students in them to understand better the theory and
principles that are relevant to business.
• Case studies illustrate a principle or a particular point
that the instructor wishes to make. They show that the
theory has a practical application and bring the subject
matter to life.
 Case Studies
• Case studies are designed to illustrate a more
general point or a theory that is already well
known to most, if not all, instructors in the
subject.
• The purpose of teaching cases is to help
students learn. The cases themselves may be
based on real life or they may be fictional.
 Research Cases
• Research cases are used as empirical
evidence to convince other researchers of the
applicability (or inapplicability) of a particular
theory or proposition.
• The purpose of research cases is thus to
contribute to knowledge in a particular field.
 A comparison of teaching and
research cases
Teaching Cases
• Written primarily for
students
• Designed to illustrate an
existing theory or principle
• Published on its own as a
teaching case, often with
notes for the instructor
Research Cases
• Written primarily for
researchers
• Designed to contribute to a
new theory or explore/test
an existing theory
• Published as part of a
research article in a journal,
conference, or book
• Writing a research case requires different skills and
knowledge than when writing a teaching case.
• One of the key things about creating teaching cases is
that the case needs to be written in an engaging
manner such that students are inspired and
encouraged to learn.
• To write a research case, the author needs to have a
much higher and more detailed knowledge of the
subject matter. The author needs to be familiar, the
latest research on the particular topic in question.
 THEORY BUILDING FROM CASE
STUDIES IN MANAGEMENT
• Research case studies can be used in the exploratory phase
of a research topic, to discover the relevant features,
factors, or issues that might apply in other similar
situations. In this way, case studies are used in the early
stages of research on a particular topic.
• Research cases can also be used in explanatory research,
when there is already a large body of literature on the
subject. In this way, case studies can be used to test theory,
to develop causal explanations,or even to compare
theories.
• The case study researcher seeks to understand how and
why a particular business decision was made, or how and
why a business process works the way it does.