scholarly journals Can We Generalize from Case Studies?

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 152-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul F. Steinberg

This article considers the role of generalization in comparative case studies, using as exemplars the contributions to this special issue on climate change politics. As a research practice, generalization is a logical argument for extending one’s claims beyond the data, positing a connection between events that were studied and those that were not. No methodological tradition is exempt from the requirement to demonstrate a compelling logic of generalization. The article presents a taxonomy of the logics of generalization underlying diverse research methodologies, which often go unstated and unexamined. I introduce the concept of resonance groups, which provide a causeway for cross-system generalization from single case studies. Overall the results suggest that in the comparative study of complex political systems, case study research is, ceteris paribus, on par with large-N research with respect to generalizability.

Author(s):  
Helen Simons

This chapter explores case study as a major approach to research and evaluation. After first noting various contexts in which case studies are commonly used, the chapter focuses on case study research directly Strengths and potential problematic issues are outlined and then key phases of the process. The chapter emphasizes how important it is to design the case, to collect and interpret data in ways that highlight the qualitative, to have an ethical practice that values multiple perspectives and political interests, and to report creatively to facilitate use in policy making and practice. Finally, it explores how to generalize from the single case. Concluding questions center on the need to think more imaginatively about design and the range of methods and forms of reporting requiredto persuade audiences to value qualitative ways of knowing in case study research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 381-396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa L. Miller

This article reviews classic and contemporary case study research in law and social science. Taking as its starting point that legal scholars engaged in case studies generally have a set of questions distinct from those using other research approaches, the essay offers a detailed discussion of three primary contributions of case studies in legal scholarship: theory building, concept formation, and processes/mechanisms. The essay describes the role of case studies in social scientific work and their express value to legal scholars, and offers specific descriptions from classic and contemporary works.


Author(s):  
Teodorikus Hanpalam

<p><em>This research was conducted at SMA Negeri 1 Kartasura. This study aims to: (1). To find out the role of multiculturalism in value education. (2). To find out historical learning based on multiculturalism values. The research method used in this research is descriptive analysis with a single case study research strategy. Sources of data in this study are informants, places/locations, and events, as well as documents and archives. The sampling technique used in this research is purposive sampling and time sampling. The technique of data validity is done by triangulation of data/sources and triangulation of methods. The data analysis technique used in this research is an interactive analysis. Benefits of Research: (1). As an illustration regarding the role of multiculturalism in value education. (2). To understand more deeply about historical learning based on multiculturalism values.</em></p>


Author(s):  
Helen Simons

This chapter explores case study as a major approach to research and evaluation. After first noting various contexts in which case studies are commonly used, the chapter focuses on case study research directly. Strengths and potential problematic issues are outlined, followed by key phases of the process. The chapter emphasizes how important it is to design the case, to collect and interpret data in ways that highlight the qualitative, to have an ethical practice that values multiple perspectives and political interests, and to report creatively to facilitate use in policymaking and practice. Finally, the chapter explores how to generalize from the single case. Concluding issues center on the need to think more imaginatively about design and the range of methods and forms of reporting required to persuade audiences to value qualitative ways of knowing in case study research.


Author(s):  
Mark Widdowson

Commenting on the lack of case studies published in modern psychotherapy publications, the author reviews the strengths of case study methodology and responds to common criticisms, before providing a summary of types of case studies including clinical, experimental and naturalistic. Suggestions are included for developing systematic case studies and brief descriptions are given of a range of research resources relating to outcome and process measures. Examples of a pragmatic case study design and a hermeneutic single-case efficacy design are given and the paper concludes with some ethical considerations and an exhortation to the TA community to engage more widely in case study research. 


Author(s):  
Andrea D. Ellinger ◽  
Rochell McWhorter

This article introduces the concept of qualitative case study research as empirical inquiry. It defines and distinguishes what a case study is, the purposes, intentions, and types of case studies. It then describes how to determine if a qualitative case study is the preferred approach for conducting research. It overviews the essential steps in designing qualitative case study research, including the role of literature and theory, approaches for collecting data and analyzing it, as well as how to write up and present case study findings. It articulates how to avoid common pitfalls when engaging in qualitative case study research and concludes with the strengths and limitations associated with this form of empirical inquiry.


1999 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 161-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy J. McKeown

Gary King, Robert O. Keohane, and Sydney Verba's Designing Social Inquiry exploits the metaphor of researcher-as-statistician to develop guidelines for conducting social scientific research that are allegedly applicable to all empirical investigations. Their approach has sharp and often unflattering implications for case studies and similar research strategies. Because their statistical worldview is unable to make sense of important aspects of case study research or of the importance that is sometimes attached to the findings of a single case, their argument seemingly casts doubt on the wisdom of producing or consuming such studies.I argue that the foundation of classical statistics and the epistemology of Carl Hempel and Karl Popper is an inadequate and misleading basis for a critical evaluation of case studies. I then present examples of research that are not easily accommodated within the authors' framework and sketch the elements of an alternative epistemological framework rooted in a “pattern” model of explanation. The latter is a standpoint that is much more helpful in understanding and criticizing case studies than the framework presented in Designing Social Inquiry.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Khalifa Ababacar Sy Diop ◽  
Ersi Liu

This study was inspired by two of the leading papers in the case study method: Eisenhardt (1991) and Dyer and Wilkins (1991). The work of those authors could be considered a benchmark for research based on a case study. Additionally, this research comes as a complement to re-categorize case study research design. After reviewing those papers, the authors identified certain misunderstandings relative to when a case study should be addressed as single or multiple case studies. This study reviewed both recent and ancient research papers that used the case study research design in their investigations based on this misunderstanding. Thus, the previously identified misinterpretation of case study categorization is the gap this study filled. For this study, the case study research design was to be re-categorized to understand which case study design suits which research study. Accordingly, based on the identified gap, the study used secondary data to re-categorize the case study research design through a literature review method. As a result, the study identified three case study categories: single setting case study with single sub-case, single setting case study with multiple sub-cases, and multiple case studies. Consequently, the result re-categorizes single case study design into single sub-case and multiple sub-cases. This study makes recommendations through the proposed approach that filled the gap identified in the case study design categorization. In terms of adding to knowledge, this study’s proposed approach will augment the optimal use of case study research design by management, economics, and other disciplines’ researchers in the future.


Author(s):  
Nicolás J.B. Wiedemann ◽  
Leona Wiegmann ◽  
Juergen Weber

Organizational routines can constitute a temporary settlement of individual actors’ diverging interests, described as a truce that enables the routine as a collective accomplishment to proceed. In this regard, scholars have recognized the central but ambiguous role of artefacts; they may be used to coordinate the interactions in routines but may also be mobilized to serve individual interests. Following this line of thinking, this chapter assumes a process perspective to advance our understanding of how such temporal settlements are continuously formed and in particular, the role artefacts play in this process. Based on a single case study over a period of thirty-three months, it analyses the use of a newly implemented artefact that inadvertently impeded smooth routine functioning as the artefact provided content that gave actors leeway to act out their interests in enacting the routine.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 632
Author(s):  
Valentina Pacella ◽  
Giuseppe Kenneth Ricciardi ◽  
Silvia Bonadiman ◽  
Elisabetta Verzini ◽  
Federica Faraoni ◽  
...  

The anarchic hand syndrome refers to an inability to control the movements of one’s own hand, which acts as if it has a will of its own. The symptoms may differ depending on whether the brain lesion is anterior, posterior, callosal or subcortical, but the relative classifications are not conclusive. This study investigates the role of white matter disconnections in a patient whose symptoms are inconsistent with the mapping of the lesion site. A repeated neuropsychological investigation was associated with a review of the literature on the topic to identify the frequency of various different symptoms relating to this syndrome. Furthermore, an analysis of the neuroimaging regarding structural connectivity allowed us to investigate the grey matter lesions and white matter disconnections. The results indicated that some of the patient’s symptoms were associated with structures that, although not directly damaged, were dysfunctional due to a disconnection in their networks. This suggests that the anarchic hand may be considered as a disconnection syndrome involving the integration of multiple antero-posterior, insular and interhemispheric networks. In order to comprehend this rare syndrome better, the clinical and neuroimaging data need to be integrated with the clinical reports available in the literature on this topic.


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