research methods- case studies

Question 1

case studies

Answer 1

-provide an in-depth analysis of an individual, group, institution, or event
-longitudinal and tend to take place over a long period of time

Question 2

who provides the data in case studies?

Answer 2

the individual themselves, may also involve gathering data from family and friends

Question 3

who is often tested in case studies?

Answer 3

-unusual individuals or events, e.g. person w/rare disorder or the sequence of riots that led to the 2011 London riots
-but CS can be on ‘typical cases’ such as an elderly person’s recollections of childhood

Question 4

what type of data is collected from case studies?

Answer 4

mainly qualitative

Question 5

how do researchers construct case studies?

Answer 5

-using interviews, observations and questionnaires or a combination of all of these
-mainly qualitative
-can also be quantitive- psych tests may also be used to assess intelligence, personality, etc

Question 6

evaluation of case studies

Answer 6

+ rich, detailed insight
+ enables study of unusual behaviour
- prone to researcher bias
- small samples

Question 7

case studies: rich, detailed insight

Answer 7

-preferred to the ‘superficial’ forms of data that might be collected (e.g. from an experiment assessing one aspect of behaviour at one moment in time)
-such detail is likely to increase the validity of the data collected

Question 8

case studies: enables study of unusual behaviour

Answer 8

-some behaviours/ conditions are very rare (e.g. HM) and cannot be studied using other methods
-in addition, some cases can help understanding of ‘typical’ functioning

Question 9

case studies: prone to researcher bias

Answer 9

-conclusions based on subjective interpretation of the researcher and personal accounts
-may reduce the validity of the study

Question 10

case studies: small samples

Answer 10

-sample may be one individual/event with unique characteristics
-makes it difficult to generalise (low EV)