CASE STUDY RESEARCH

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

Chapter 7

Sage Publications Limited © 2008 Michael D. Myers

All Rights Reserved
 Introduction

 Case studies can be used

in teaching and research
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 The following is concerned

with the use of research
cases only

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 Teaching and research cases

Teaching cases Research cases

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•Written primarily for •Written primarily for

students researchers
•Designed to illustrate an •Designed to contribute to a
existing theory or principle new theory or explore/test
•Published on its own as a an existing theory
teaching case, often with •Published as part of a
notes for the instructor research article in a journal,
conference or book

Table 7.1 – A comparison of teaching and research cases

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 Research cases

 Research cases can be used:

– In exploratory research – to discover
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– In explanatory research – to test, to explain, or to

compare
 The purpose of case study research in business
and management is to use empirical evidence
from real people in real organizations to make an
original contribution to knowledge

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 Case study research

 The term ‘case study’ has multiple meanings. It

can be used to describe a detailed study of a
single social unit (e.g. a case study of a particular
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

organization) or to describe a research method.

 Yin defines a case study as an empirical enquiry
that:
– investigates a contemporary phenomenon within
its real-life context, especially when
– the boundaries between phenomenon and context
are not clearly evident" (Yin, 1994: 13).
 Yin’s approach to case study research is basically
positivist, since he recommends the use of
hypotheses and/or propositions

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 Definition of case study research in business

 ‘Case study research in business uses empirical

evidence from one or more organizations where
an attempt is made to study the subject matter
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in context. Multiple sources of evidence are used,

although most of the evidence comes from
interviews and documents’.

 In business and management, case study

research almost always involves a firm or
organization
 Case study research can be positivist,
interpretive or critical

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 Positivist Case Studies

 Good case study design is vital

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

 Yin (1994) suggests five components of good

case study design:
1. a study’s questions
2. its propositions, if any
3. its unit(s) of analysis
4. the logic linking the data to the
propositions
5. the criteria for interpreting the findings

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 Interpretive Case Studies
 Interpretive case studies generally attempt to
understand phenomena through the meanings
that people assign to them
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

 Interpretive case studies define quality in terms

of the plausibility of the story and the overall
argument (not validity and reliability)
 Interpretive case studies focus on the social
construction of reality – how and why people see
the world the way they do

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 Critical case studies

 Critical case study research involves critical

reflection on current practices, questions taken-
for-granted assumptions, and critiques the status
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quo based on the theories of one or more critical

theorists
 Words such as ‘validity’ and ‘reliability’, which
imply an objective reality independent of social
reality, are not normally used in interpretive or
critical studies

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 Doing case study research
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 Make sure that you find an interesting case

 Make sure you have good people skills
 Gather rich data and try to establish the context

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 Critique of case study research

 Case study research is the most popular qualitative

research method used in the business disciplines
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 Case study research allows researchers to explore or

test theories within the context of messy real-life
situations
 A disadvantage of case study research is that it can
be difficult to gain access to the particular company
or group of companies that you want to study
 Another disadvantage is that the researcher has no
control over the situation
 Case study research can be time consuming

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 What makes an exemplary case study?
 The case study must be ‘interesting’
 The case study must display sufficient evidence
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 The case study must be ‘complete’

 The case study must consider alternative
perspectives
 The case study should be written in an engaging
manner
 The case study should contribute to knowledge

 One case study is fine! A common error: sampling

logic

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