HOC11: CASE STUDY DESIGN Flashcards
what is the definition and purpose of case study design
- Definition: An empirical inquiry into a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, often using multiple sources of evidence.
- Usage: Widely employed in management and business research, relying on qualitative data.
- Research Problem: Typically addresses “how” and “why” questions about organizations, situations, events, or processes.
- Suitability: Applies to explanatory, descriptive, and exploratory research to develop or test propositions and build theory.
how does case study research differ from other research methods
- approach to investigate a contemporary phenomenon , embedded in real-life context = natural setting
-combines various data collection methods to ensure validity - typically built upon interviews , participant , observations , small survey’s , and secondary data = multiple sources
-flexible methodological approach : positivistic , interpretivistic - focuses on richness of understanding
-selection of cases not based on sampling logic but on REPLICATION LOGIC
-purposive sampling
what triangulation mean
using more than one source of data to study a phenomon
what does replication logic mean
each case stands on its own , is carefully selected -> leading to similar or contrasting results , adding to generalizability
explain single case case study design
-> about one context or situation
example interview participants give different perspectives of the same situation
explain the multiple case or cross-case analysis in case study design
-> about two or more contexts or situations
- used to analyze data within and across case studies
- to understand differences and similarities between cases
- more robust results and more convincing theory if :
enough time spent for further-in depth analysis
sufficient empirical evidence is generated
what does quality of a case study depend on
skillful exploitation of its advantages and rigor of its conducting ( how the study is conducted and method applied asses quality of study )
list the different types of cases
the critical case
the extreme ( or deviant or unique ) case
the exemplifying ( or representative or typical) case
the revelatory case
the longitudinal case
the critical case
* Each type of case serves specific research purposes, ranging from understanding theoretical nuances to exploring unique or revelatory phenomena over time. Choosing the appropriate case type depends on the research objectives and the nature of the phenomenon under investigation
Explain the critical case
Based on well-developed theory.
Aims to understand the circumstances in which a hypothesis will either hold or not.
explain the extreme ( or deviant or unique) case
Studies a distinctive or unique event.
Specific insights are more important than generalizability.
explain the exemplifying case
Captures conditions of an everyday situation.
Serves as an example that exemplifies a broader category.
explain the revelatory case
Provides an opportunity to analyze a phenomenon previously inaccessible to scientific study or under-explored.
explain the longitudinal case
Studies a phenomenon over time, often combined with one of the other types.
Introduces a time dimension and is typically combined with other case types.
what are and explain the different sources of evidence for case study
interviews
- unstructured , semi-structured etc
focus groups
- group interviews
observation
content and narrative analysis
archival records
- on customer satisfaction , production statistics , charts …
documents
- internal memos , reports , agendas etc
what are the steps of conducting good case study research
- objectives and problem clearly defined
- research process details
- research design thoroughly planned
- think about objective of the case study
- detect patterns in the information
- structure findings
- regarding the conclusions
