Case Study Research

                       Case Study Research

Written by L.R.Gay, Geoffrey E. Mills and Peter Airasian in Educational Research. Competencies for Analysis and Application.  New Jersey: Pearson. 2009. pp. 426-435.

I. Definition
A case study research is a qualitative research approach in which researchers focus on a unit of study known as a bounded system (e.g., individual teachers, a classroom, or a school). A number of researchers have addressed the definition of a case, which is a concept that is sometimes difficult to grasp. Merriam  explained, the case is "a thing, a single entity, a unit around which there are boundaries.

I can 'fence in' what I am going to study." Stake further ointed out, "Case study is not a methodological choice but a choice of what is to be studied;"; similarly, Miles and Huberman (1994) described a case study as an investigation of a phenomenon that occurs within a specific context. In other words, if the phenomenon you want to study is not bounded, not identifiable within a specific context, it is not appropriately studied as a case study. Yin (2003) went beyond the definition of case to define case study research as a research strategy that is an all-encompassing method covering design, data collection techniques, and specific approaches to data analysis.

Taken together, these statements suggest that case study research is
- a qualitative approach to studying a phenomenon;
- focused on a unit of study, or a bounded system;
- not a methodological choice, but a choice of what
to study; an all-encompassing research method.

Furthermore, the term case study is used not only for the research approach but also for the product of case
study research. Case study research is unique in that it leads to a different kind of knowledge compared to other kinds of research. It is more concrete case study knowledge resonates with the readers' experiences because it is tangible and illuminative. It is rooted in the context of the study and is also related to the readers' knowledge, experience, and understandings as they  compare and contrast the case to their own life experiences. Case study knowledge is interpreted by readers who are affected not only by the context but also by the populations the reader has in mind.

Most important, what we learn from a single case is dependent on the ways in which the case is like and unlike other cases. This idea is sometimes called the "epistemology of the particular."  That is, the context of the case and the reader's prior knowledge and experiences affect how the reader is able to scaffold the case study and apply the findings to a similar context.

II. Characteristics
Case studies can be described as particularistic, descriptive, and heuristic. To say a case study is particularistic  means  that it is focused on a particular phenomenon, such as a situation or event. That is, a case study researcher may specifically choose a particular instance of a phenomenon under investigation to understand a specific problem that occurs in everyday practice. For example, a teacher may choose to conduct a case study of a child with special needs to understand the effectiveness of a specified Individualized Educational Plan (TEP).The case study can then supplement any data about the child gathered through standardized testing procedures. To say that a case study is descriptive means that the end result of the case study, the narrative, includes "thick description"  of the phenomenon that was the focus of the case study research—inclusion of many variables and analyses of their interactions .The term heuristic refers to the fact that case studies "illuminate the reader's understanding of the phenomenon under study," beyond the reader's original knowledge.

In short, one outcome of case study research is a narrative account that provides the researcher (and reader of the case study) with new insights into the way things are and into the kinds of relationships that exist among participants in the study.

Case study research can also be characterized by the disciplinary orientation the researcher brings to the case study. That is, different disciplinary fields use case study research for different purposes. Educational researchers frequently rely on the disciplines of anthropology, history, psychology, or sociology for their conceptual frameworks and for techniques for data collection, data analysis, and data interpretation.

Anthropological case studies on educational topics, for example, are influenced by the techniques commonly used in ethnographic research Mills' study of the culture of change in the McKenzie School District was as an ethnographic case study. In historical case studies, researchers use techniques commonly used in historical research. For example, researchers collect data from primary and secondary source materials. In education, this type of case study research has tended to focus on descriptions of institutions, programs, and practices, including how they have changed over time. Psychological case studies focus on the individual. Although Freud is most commonly associated with psychological case study research, the case studies conducted in psychology with an emphasis on learning are the ones most commonly cited by educational researchers. Sociological case study research typically focuses on the constructs of society and socialization in studying educational phenomena.

Regardless of the disciplinary orientation underpinning case study research, case studies can be characterized in terms of their overall intent. For example, is the case study researcher intending to be largely descriptive, or is the goal to contribute to existing theory or to evaluate an existing program? Although most case study research in education tends to be descriptive, the use of case studies in program evaluation has been well established: "Case studies are particularly valuable in program evaluation when the program is individualized, so the evaluation needs to be attentive to and capture individual differences among participants, diverse experiences of the program, or unique variations from one program setting to another. Regardless of the unit of analysis, a qualitative case study seeks to describe that unit in depth and detail, holistically and in context.

III. Designing
The process of designing a case study research project shares many of the design features of other qualitative approaches discussed in previous chapters. As with other qualitative research designs, a good case study research design includes a statement of the purpose of the research, initial research questions, review of related literature, and a rationale for the selection of the case (i.e., unit of analysis). Specifically, the case study researcher should:
1. Determine the research questions,
2. Define the case under study,
3. Determine the role of theory development in case
selection.
4. Determine the theoretical and conceptual framework of the case study.
5. Determine whether a single case study, a multiple case study, or a collective case study is appropriate.

A screening procedure may include the followingsteps:
1. Review documents about the proposed case study site to determine whether or not it is an appropriate choice.
2. Conduct informal interviews of key participants in the study to determine their willingness to participate in the study and to ensure that they fully understand the nature of their commitment over the length of the study.
3. Determine whether the case study participants have the necessary experience and knowledge of the phenomenon under investigation and the ability to provide information.

IV. Data Collection Techniques
Like other qualitative researchers, case study researchers use the same data collection techniques used by researchers conducting other genres of qualitative research (e.g., ethnographic research and narrative research) with the aim of seeking understanding about the case under investigation a case study researcher collects descriptive narrative and visual data to answer "how" and "why" questions. Furthermore, like other qualitative researchers, case study researchers are aware of the need to triangulate their data through the use of multiple data sources.

V. Conducting and Analyzing
In educational research it is common to find case study research undertaken about one phenomenon but at multiple sites. These studies are commonly referred to as collective case studies, multicase or multisite studies, or comparative case studies. Multiple case studies require cross-site analysis.

An unordered meta-matrix is a data management tool that enables the case study researcher to assemble master charts with descriptive data from each site on one large sheet of paper. In a site-ordered descriptive matrix, sites are ordered on a variable of interest so that the researcher can see differences.  A site-ordered predictor-outcome matrix moves the case study researcher from working descriptively/deductively to a more explanatory/interpretive mode. A time-ordered meta-matrix extends the cross-site analysis to include chronology as an organizing variable.

Scatterplots are visual displays of data from all the case study sites based on dimensions or themes of interest that appear to be related to each other. A site-ordered effects matrix is used by case study researchers to sort through the research sites and to display probable cause and effect relations. Causal models extend the case study analysis and assist the case study researcher to identify how things go together.