CASE STUDY RESEARCH

BY
Muhammad Kazim
Ph.D. Psychology
Roll No. 24016111-001
Case Study- Meaning and Definition
• The term ‘case study’ in its literal sense means a study or investigation
involving a case. The term case, however, in our day to day life is
employed in a variety of ways. A lawyer is supposed to deal with legal
cases of his clients. A clinician or physician has to take care of his
cases in his clinic or ward of the hospital. A clerk has to maintain the
files of number of cases entrusted to him by his boss. However, in the
field of behavioral sciences research, the term case and its study is
used somewhat in a different sense and meaning.
Definitions
• Gravetter and Forzano (2003): The case study design involves the
indepth study and detailed description of a single individual (0r a very
small group). A case study may involve an intervention or treatment
administered by the researcher. When a case study does not include any
treatment or intervention, it is often called a case history.
• Lodico et al. (2006): Case study research is form of qualitative research
that endeavors to discover meaning to investigate processes, and to gain
insight into and an in-depth understanding of an individual, group, or
situation.
CHARACTRISTICS OF THE CASE
STUDY RESEARCH
• Case study research involves an in-depth, holistic, detailed and
longitudinal study of a case.
• Case study research is usually considered a type of research falling in
the qualitative research domain.
• Carried out in the natural setting and real-life, a case study research
provides a systematic way of looking at events. Collecting data,
analyzing information, reporting results on a descriptive and
exploratory way.
• Case study research helps the researcher in gaining a sharpened
understanding of why the instance/a particular behavior pattern.
Continued
• Case studies emphasize a detailed contextual analysis
of limited number of events or conditions and their
relations.
• Case studies may be descriptive or explanatory.
• The information or data collected in a case study
research can be obtained in a variety of ways.
• Case studies can establish cause and effect.
• Case studies strive to portray.
• Case studies are well suited for generating, rather than
testing, hypothesis.
DISTINGUISHING CASE STUDY RSEARCH
FROM CASE STUDY METHOD/TECHNIQUE
• Case study as a method or technique provides the
researcher a tool or technique involving the detailed
and in-depth study of a single individual.
• Case study research design is that the goal is simply to
obtain a detailed, in-depth description of the case being
studied.
DISTINGUISHING CASE STUDY
RESEARCH FROM CASE HISTORY
• Case study research is distinguished with an
intervention or treatment administered by the
researcher on the basis of a detailed and in-depth study
or investigation of the case studied.
• When a case study doe not include any treatment or
intervention, it should be termed a case history, and not
a case study research.
TYPES OF STUDIES IN CASE STUDY
RESEARCH
• Explanatory Case Studies: Explanatory case studies
are aimed at explaining the causes underlying a
phenomenon or behavior.
• Descriptive Case Studies: Descriptive case studies
are aimed at providing description, or document and
classify a situation, even tor phenomenon.
EXAMPLES OF A FEW CASE STUDIES
IN BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES
• Cases of exceptional children with special needs.
• Cases of the problematic and anti-social personalities.
• Case studies of varying types of professionals.
• Case studies of working class.
• Case studies of a business establishment, working of the
managers-successful or unsuccessful.
• Case studies related to the cultural and social set-up of a
particular community, tribe or inhabitants.
• Case studies of children having varying interests, abilities
and aptitudes.
STEPS AND STAGES INVOLVED IN A
CASE STUDY RESEAR CH
Step1: Identifying and Defining the Research Question
Any research begins in the light of the purposes realized through its execution.
The researcher must be very clear what he has to do and why. Therefore the
first stage in case study research begins with the establishment of a firm
research focus on which the research should concentrate over the course of his
study. The researcher at this stage thus needs to establish the focus of his
study by forming questions about the situation or problem to be studied and
determining the purpose for study. The research object in a case study is
always a case more often in the shape of a program, an entity, an event, a
person, an institution, community or a group of people. The researcher is
needed to investigate the case in depth using a variety of data gathering
methods to produce evidence that leads to understanding of the case and
answers the research questions. These research questions now at this stage
should be properly identified and defined as to set the clear cut goals or
objectives of the research study.
Step2: Setting the Research Design for Seeking
Answers to the Identified Research Questions
Now the researcher is needed to take decision about design of
the study in terms of selecting participants of the study, data
gathering and analysis techniques.
 Selection of the Participants
In many case study researches, there is no need of struggling
for selection of participants as the researcher has to study
nothing but a particular case already identified as a critical,
rare and problematic case.
In some case study researches, the researcher is needed to
take care of a particular type of behavior, physical or metal
health conditions, success or failure of an introduced
programme in some
Continued
Well defined workplaces, institutions, localities etc. In
such situation, he has to face the problem of selecting
and identifying suitable single or multiple cases as
subject or subjects of his study.
Continued
Decision abut the data collection and analysis
devices
 The researcher should determine in advance what
evidence to gather and what analysis techniques to use
with the data to answer research questions.
Case study research usually requires from researchers
to maintain multiplicity in the use of data collection
sources as well as data collection methods for gathering
information in detail and in-depth for serving their
purposes of the study.
Continued
 Data gathered is normally largely qualitative, but it
may also be quantitative. Tools to collect data can
include surveys, interviews, observations,
documentation review, archival records, and even the
collection of physical artefacts.
The researcher must ensure in advance the applicability
and use of the designated data gathering tools
systematically and properly in collecting the evidence.
Step 3: Pre-preparation for carrying
out the study including Data
Collection
 Data Collection
Data Collection task assumes a big responsibility on the
part of researchers in case study researches on account of
its largeness, multiplicity of the sources and techniques of
data collection and senility of issues involved in collecting
data in its real setting. It needs a lot of advance
preparation on the part of researchers.
 The researchers must make themselves aware or rather
receive proper guidelines and formal training in the
matter of making selection, development and use of
appropriate data collection techniques.
Continued
 Researchers should get themselves trained in the art of
establishing proper rapport with the participants of the
study, be a good listener and learn the proper ways of
observing things and recording the events.
 The researchers should make use of the process to
verify the authenticity and usefulness of their data
collected from multiple sources and means.
Continued
Caring for the reliability and validity of the study
It is necessary for the researchers to ensure that the
study is well constructed to ensure construct validity,
internal validity, external validity, and reliability.
 Construct validity requires the researcher to use the
correct measures for the concept being studied.
 Internal validity demonstrates that certain conditions
lead to other conditions and requires the use of multiple
pieces of evidence from multiple sources to uncover
convergent lines of inquiry.
Continued
 External validity reflects whether or not findings are
generalizable beyond the immediate case or cases.
 Reliability refers to the stability, accuracy, and precision
of measurement. Exemplary case design, therefore,
should take care of the fact that here the procedures
used are well documented and can be repeated with the
same results over and over again.
Step 4: Carrying out Field Work
For carrying out field work, the researcher should take
care of the things as below.
He must take all precautions for noting down/recording
the statements of the persons helpful in providing
information about the case under study.
He should be careful in knowing all what can be
identified through observation of behavior in varying
situations of his real life happenings.
He should try to help of the strutted questioning format
for extracting information from the sources of evidence.
Continued
 The information collected from multiple sources of
evidence through the use of multiple techniques should
be stored well in comprehensive and systematic way in
formats suitable for the proper analysis of data.
Step 5: Evaluation and Analysis of
the Collected Data
The researcher should try to examine raw data using many
interpretations for knowing the extent to which the findings
are capable to have a thorough investigation of the case
under study in relation to the research questions raised.
The researcher should try to categorize, tabulate and
recombine data to address the research questions or
urpose of the study and conducts cross checks of facts and
discrepancies in taking notes of the collected information.
He should try to go for the focused, short, repeat
interviews necessary to gather additional data for the
verification of things observed and facts gathered.
Continued
The researcher should try to make use of some specific
techniques like placing things into arrays, creating
matrices of categories, creating flowcharts or other
displays, and tabulating frequency of events.
The researcher is also free to make use of quantitative
data being collected to corroborate and support the
qualitative data. It can prove useful in describing and
explaining all about the case under study.
Steps 6: Drawing Conclusions about the Remedial
Steps/Suggestions for the Welfare of the Case
Studied or Others
In this step and stage of research study, researcher has
to fulfil this obligation.
For the critical and clinical type case study research, he
has to first discuss the actual conditions reflecting the
critical and abnormal behavior of the case along with
the underlying causes/factors contributing to the
development of such behavior and then provide
description of the remedial steps or measures to be
undertaken for the welfare and treatment of the case.
One has to bring into limelight the nature, good and
bad points related to the functioning of behavior of the
case studied.
Steps 7: Writing the Research
Report
In writing research reporting, the researcher is supposed
to pay attention to these things mentioned below:
 The researcher should make a wise choice depending
on the type of the case study and the purpose served.
A case study report should be invariably stand to the
general nature and purpose of the case study research,
i.e. to provide a detailed and in-depth account of the
case coverings its all aspects in the real set-up.
Continued
The researcher should make mention of the specific
stories related to the success or disappointment
experienced at the time of interacting with the sources
of data collection and making sense from the type of
information collected from the various sources using
various methods.
The report written by researcher should be able to
provide a proper insight to the average reader and user
of the study enabling him to make use of the application
and findings of the study, including the repetition of the
study, for studying and benefitting the similar cases .