Case Study according to Ebneyamini

Process description

Case research, also called case study, is a method of intensively studying a phenomenon over time within its natural setting in one or a few sites. Multiple methods of data collection, such as interviews, observations, prerecorded documents, and secondary data, may be employed and inferences about the phenomenon of interest tend to be rich, detailed, and contextualized. Case research can be employed in a positivist manner for the purpose of theory testing or in an interpretive manner for theory building. This method is more popular in business research than in other social science disciplines.

There are different ideas about what a case study is. If we try to find a common denominator that case study researchers might agree on, it would be something along the following lines: The case study should have a “case” which is the object of study. The case should be a complex functioning unit, be investigated in its natural context with a multitude of methods, and be contemporary. Nevertheless, the case study researchers mentioned above emphasize different features. Stake points out that crucial to case study research are not the methods of investigation, but that the object of study is a case: “As a form of research, the case study is defined by the interest in individual cases, not by the methods of inquiry used.” Other researchers, such as Yin (1994), place more emphasis on the method and the techniques that constitute a case study (Johansson, 2003).

Purpose of Case Study Research

Description

Researchers have different ideas, but many agree on what is the purpose of doing research using a case study research strategy. We try to provide an overview of those here. First, we have to decide whether a case study can help us to achieve our research goal or not. There are three factors that determine the best research methodology: The types of questions to be answered, the extent of control over behavioral events, and the degree of focus on contemporary as opposed to historical events.

Case study research is appropriate to be used for researches with “how” and “why” questions. Yin (1994) also presented at least four applications for a case study

• To explain complex causal links in real-life interventions
• To describe the real-life context in which the intervention has occurred
• To describe the intervention itself
• To explore those situations in which the intervention being evaluated has no clear set of outcomes.

Meredith (1998) noted that there are three outstanding strengths of case study research:

• The phenomenon can be studied in its natural setting and meaningful, relevant theory generated from the understanding gained through observing actual practice
• The case method allows the questions of why, what, and how, to be answered with a relatively full understanding of the nature and complexity of the complete phenomenon
• The case method lends itself to early, exploratory investigations where variables are still unknown and the phenomenon not at all understood

Voss and his colleagues (2002) have mentioned that the purpose of the case study is:

• Exploration to uncover areas for research and theory development
• Theory building to identify/describe key variables, identifying linkages between variables and identifying “why” these relationships exist
• Theory testing to test the theories developed in the previous stages or predict future outcomes
• Theory extension/refinement to better structure the theories in the light of the observed results

Dul and Hak (2008) noted that most of the researchers consider case study research as a useful research strategy (A) when the topic is broad and highly complex, (B) when there is not a lot of theory available, and (C) when “context” is very important. So they consider using case study for theory building, theory testing, hypothesis building, hypothesis testing, and description..

Examples

Theory oriented, practice oriented

Further Readings

Ebneyamini, Shiva & Moghadam, Mohammad. (2018). Toward Developing a Framework for Conducting Case Study Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 17. 160940691881795. 10.1177/1609406918817954.

Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D. K., and Mead, M. (1987). "The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems," MIS Quarterly (11:3), 369-386.

Bhattacherjee, Anol, "Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices" (2012). Textbooks Collection. 3. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3.

Yin, R. K. (2002), Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Reasons to Use Case Study Research

Description

Choosing a research strategy or methodology depends on three things:

1. Research question
2. The extent of control the researcher has over actual behavioral events
3. The degree of focus on contemporary as opposed to historical events

Case study research is generally thought of as being useful to answer “how and why?” questions, and where in-depth research is needed using a holistic lens. It does not require control over actual behavioral events. Meredith suggests four strong points for case study research:

• The phenomenon can be studied in its natural setting and meaningful
• Relevant theory generated from the understanding gained through observing actual practice
• The case method allows the questions of why, what, and how to be answered with a relatively full understanding of the nature and complexity of the compete for phenomenon
• The case method lends itself to early, exploratory investigations where the variables are still unknown and phenomenon not at all understood

Handfield and Melnyk (1998) have identified four purposes for case study research: exploration, theory building, theory testing, and theory extension/refinement. According to Dul and Hak, most of the authors consider case study research as a useful research strategy when the topic is broad and highly complex, when there is not a lot of theory available, and when “context” is very important. They suggest that the case study can be appropriate for building theory, testing theory, building hypothesis, testing hypothesis, and descriptive study. In our analysis of 15 latest articles published in three important journals of management of technology, 14 of the 15 of them were theory-oriented and one practice-oriented study.

Examples

Theory extension/refinement, theory building, hypothesis testing

Further Readings

Ebneyamini, Shiva & Moghadam, Mohammad. (2018). Toward Developing a Framework for Conducting Case Study Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 17. 160940691881795. 10.1177/1609406918817954.

Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D. K., and Mead, M. (1987). "The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems," MIS Quarterly (11:3), 369-386.

Bhattacherjee, Anol, "Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices" (2012). Textbooks Collection. 3. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3.

Yin, R. K. (2014). Case study research: Design and methods. Los Angeles, CA: Sage

Yin, R. K. (2002), Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Handfield, R., and Melnyk, S. 1998. “The Scientific Theory-Building Process: A Primer Using the Case of TQM,” Journal of Operations Management (16), pp. 321–339. (https://doi.org/10.1016/S0272-6963(98)00017-5)

Types of Case Study Research

Description

In terms of defining types of case study research, researchers title them differently. Yin has identified some specific types of case study research:

• Exploratory
• Explanatory
• Eescriptive

Stake identified three others:

• Intrinsic
• Instrumental
• Collective

Or according to Zainal, other categories include interpretive and evaluative case studies. Dul and Hak categorize the case study research as the single case study and comparative case study. All in all, Ebneyamini et al. believe that in using the case study research as a methodology we have two types: single case study or multiple case study which follows a replication logic.

Examples

Comparative case study, longitudinal case study, single case study

Further Readings

Ebneyamini, Shiva & Moghadam, Mohammad. (2018). Toward Developing a Framework for Conducting Case Study Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 17. 160940691881795. 10.1177/1609406918817954.

Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D. K., and Mead, M. (1987). "The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems," MIS Quarterly (11:3), 369-386.

Bhattacherjee, Anol, "Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices" (2012). Textbooks Collection. 3. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3.

Yin, R. K. (2002), Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Methods of Gathering Data

Description

There are recommendations proposed by researchers about data collection that if it’s done well, it will help the generalization and viability of the case study research: Yin suggests three principles of data collection for case studies: use multiple sources of data, create a case study database, and maintain a chain of evidence. Stake states that essential parts of a data-gathering plan are definition of the case, list of research questions, identification of helpers, data sources, allocation of time, expenses, and intended reporting. Dul and Hak suggest a stepwise procedure for the development of valid and reliable procedures for measurement (data collection): formulate a precise definition of the concept; determine the object of measurement; identify the location of the object of measurement; specify how evidence of the value of the variable will be extracted from the object of measurement; specify how sources of evidence will be identified, selected, and accessed; specify how evidence will be recorded; specify how data will be categorized; and lastly write a measurement protocol.

As for data sources, Yin suggests documentation, archival records, interview, direct observation, participant observation, and physical artifacts. As for data collection instruments, Stake suggests the use of observation, interview, and document review in qualitative case study research. Merriam suggests conducting effective interviews, being a careful observer, mining data from documents as techniques and procedures that researchers need in order to become effective users of the collection tools. Dul and Hak also propose a qualitative interview, using archives, questionnaire, and observation. Some recommendations mentioned by researchers while conducting an interview is that the starting question after the preliminaries should invite the interviewee to tell the story of their experience of whatever the research is about. The starting point is a question that is almost content free. This is your warranty that the answers came from the respondent and did not arise simply because your questions created a self-fulfilling prophecy. Be aware that the data collection in case study research can be both quantitative and qualitative.

Examples

Structured interview, semistructured interview, in-depth interview, archival data, meetings, informal meetings, observation

Further Readings

Ebneyamini, Shiva & Moghadam, Mohammad. (2018). Toward Developing a Framework for Conducting Case Study Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 17. 160940691881795. 10.1177/1609406918817954.

Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D. K., and Mead, M. (1987). "The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems," MIS Quarterly (11:3), 369-386.

Bhattacherjee, Anol, "Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices" (2012). Textbooks Collection. 3. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3.

Dul, J., & Hak, T. (2008). Case study methodology in business research. Abingdon, England: Routledge

Yin, R. K. (2002), Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Data Analysis

Description

Data analysis consists of examining, categorizing, tabulating, or otherwise recombining the evidence to address the initial propositions of a study. The analysis of the case study is one of the least developed aspects of the case study methodology. The researcher needs to rely on experience and the literature to present the evidence in various ways, using various interpretations. Case study researchers have different interpretations of the stage, for example, Miles and Huberman describe the phases of data analysis as data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing and verification. Yin identifies three ways for this stage: pattern matching, explanation building, and time series. He also mentions the use of logic models and cross-case synthesis. None of these come with any formulas, although statistical calculations can be part of them. Eisenhardt suggests two stage for data analysis: the analysis within case data and searching for cross-case patterns. Stake identifies three ways: correspondence and patterns, categorical aggregation, or direct interpretation, and naturalistic generalization. Merriam mentions six analytic strategies such as ethnographic analysis, narrative analysis, phenomenological analysis, constant comparative method, content analysis, and analytic induction. Dul and Hak also mention pattern matching and visual inspection as ways of analyzing data.

Examples

Within-case analysis, cross-case analysis, compare the narratives of informants, pattern matching, writing individual case histories by using archival data, using repertory grid method, data reduction (open coding), visual inspection

Further Readings

Ebneyamini, Shiva & Moghadam, Mohammad. (2018). Toward Developing a Framework for Conducting Case Study Research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods. 17. 160940691881795. 10.1177/1609406918817954.

Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D. K., and Mead, M. (1987). "The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems," MIS Quarterly (11:3), 369-386.

Bhattacherjee, Anol, "Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices" (2012). Textbooks Collection. 3. https://scholarcommons.usf.edu/oa_textbooks/3.

Yin, R. K. (2002), Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.