Business Research Methods chapter 9
Case study objectives (approach to a problem)
Case study research is suitable for explanatory, descriptive and exploratory research, like the other
approaches. Yin defines a case study as ‘an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary
phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between phenomenon and context
are not clearly evident; and in which multiple sources of evidence are used.
*A case study is about a person, group, or situation that has been studied over time.[1] If the case
study, for instance, is about a group, it describes the behavior of the group as a whole, not the
behavior of each individual in the group*
Case study research emphasizes the embeddedness of a phenomenon in its real-life context. Case
studies allow you better to shed light on a phenomenon from multiple perspectives defined by its
context than other approaches. Moreover, the broader scope of case studies allows you to detect
patterns and potential explanations that you initially neither expected nor looked for, which makes
them a good approach to build theory. It is especially appropriate for answering ‘why and how’-
questions.
A good case study starts with a problem that is not well understood, that is with a problem that we
cannot explain or a problem that is explained by various often contradicting explanations. The
objective of a case study is to understand a real problem and to use the gained insights for
developing new explanations and theoretical dispositions.
Difference between case study research and other research methods:
Relies on multiple sources, replication logic, results are not generalizable to a population.
Within case study research it is possible to distinguish between single and multiple case studies
(single versus multiple case studies).
Single: if the intended study research provides the closing critical study to a longer series of
case studies written by others, a single case is adequate. They are also appropriate for
investigating extreme or unique cases. Extreme cases occur, according to the rules of
probability, very rarely, hence there is often no more than one case available. (accident with
a space shuttle)
Multiple: are more appealing, though, as their results are considered more robust.
Conducting multiple case studies requires considerable thought as to which cases to select,
however. Contrary to survey research the selection of cases is not bases on sampling logic
but on replication logic. The main idea behind replication logic is that according to a theory,
one would expect that the same phenomenon occurs under the same conditions.
(implementing a CRM system, how do people respond)
The richness of evidence sources
The main advantage of case studies compared to other approaches is that they permit the
combination of different sources of evidence. It is possible to distinguish roughly three sources of
evidence;
Interviews: interviews are the most widely used source for collecting information for
evidence.
Documents and archives: documents including archival sources form a rich source of
evidence, which is rarely exploited in other research approaches and plays a crucial role in
case study research.
Observation: observation is a research approach itself. As with information obtained from
documents, information from observations augments other sources and is especially useful
Case study objectives (approach to a problem)
Case study research is suitable for explanatory, descriptive and exploratory research, like the other
approaches. Yin defines a case study as ‘an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary
phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between phenomenon and context
are not clearly evident; and in which multiple sources of evidence are used.
*A case study is about a person, group, or situation that has been studied over time.[1] If the case
study, for instance, is about a group, it describes the behavior of the group as a whole, not the
behavior of each individual in the group*
Case study research emphasizes the embeddedness of a phenomenon in its real-life context. Case
studies allow you better to shed light on a phenomenon from multiple perspectives defined by its
context than other approaches. Moreover, the broader scope of case studies allows you to detect
patterns and potential explanations that you initially neither expected nor looked for, which makes
them a good approach to build theory. It is especially appropriate for answering ‘why and how’-
questions.
A good case study starts with a problem that is not well understood, that is with a problem that we
cannot explain or a problem that is explained by various often contradicting explanations. The
objective of a case study is to understand a real problem and to use the gained insights for
developing new explanations and theoretical dispositions.
Difference between case study research and other research methods:
Relies on multiple sources, replication logic, results are not generalizable to a population.
Within case study research it is possible to distinguish between single and multiple case studies
(single versus multiple case studies).
Single: if the intended study research provides the closing critical study to a longer series of
case studies written by others, a single case is adequate. They are also appropriate for
investigating extreme or unique cases. Extreme cases occur, according to the rules of
probability, very rarely, hence there is often no more than one case available. (accident with
a space shuttle)
Multiple: are more appealing, though, as their results are considered more robust.
Conducting multiple case studies requires considerable thought as to which cases to select,
however. Contrary to survey research the selection of cases is not bases on sampling logic
but on replication logic. The main idea behind replication logic is that according to a theory,
one would expect that the same phenomenon occurs under the same conditions.
(implementing a CRM system, how do people respond)
The richness of evidence sources
The main advantage of case studies compared to other approaches is that they permit the
combination of different sources of evidence. It is possible to distinguish roughly three sources of
evidence;
Interviews: interviews are the most widely used source for collecting information for
evidence.
Documents and archives: documents including archival sources form a rich source of
evidence, which is rarely exploited in other research approaches and plays a crucial role in
case study research.
Observation: observation is a research approach itself. As with information obtained from
documents, information from observations augments other sources and is especially useful
