seminar-lecture 4 case study research june2011

8/13/2019 Seminar-Lecture 4 Case Study Research June2011

1/21

CASE STUDY RESEARC

Inside the Researchers ToolboxProfessional Lecture Series

Dr Josephine Muir

[email protected]


2/21

David Evans How to Write a BetterThesis or Report, MelbourneUniversity Publishing; 1st edition,1995.$22.50Robertson Library Level 6808.066EVA

TURNING POINT?

2


3/21

Authoritative References

Yin, Robert K. Case Study Research: Design and Methods,4th ed. Thousand Oaks, Calif: Sage Publications, c2009.Level 4 300.722 YINYin, R.K.Applications of Case Study Research, ThousandOakes, Sage: 2003.Yin, R.K.The Case Study Anthology , Thousand Oaks, Sage,2004.Robert, E. Stake, The Art of Case Study Research,Thousand Oakes, Sage: 1995.


4/21

Newbie References...

Hesse-Biber, S. G and P. Leavy The practice of qualitativeresearch, c2011; Los Angeles: SAGE. Los Angeles : SAGE,c2011. Chapter 10Swanborn, P. G. Case study research : what, why andhow?, 2010, London: SAGE.


5/21

Definition: Case Study Research

An empirical enquiry that:

investigates a contemporary phenomenon within itsreal-life context, especially when

the boundaries between phenomenon and contextare not clearly evident; and

uses multiple sources of evidence (Yin,1984:23)


6/21

Key Features

Qualitative research technique

Means of investigating complex phenomenon

Anchored in real-life situations

Intensive and descriptive

Contextual analysis


7/21

Why so Wishy-Washy?

dubious historical beginnings

multiple and conflicting definitions

no standard methodological package

is it a method, a methodology, a paradigm or an approach?

common parlance


8/21

Study or Case Study?

Is your thesis a case study of a particular phenomenon or is ita study of a particular phenomenon?

What is the working title of your thesis?

In one sentence, what is your thesis about?

In one sentence, what are you really interested in findingout about your particular subject?

Is it a case study or study???


9/21


David Evans How to Write a Better Thesis or Report,Melbourne University Press, Melbourne: 1995. Chapter 8, pp.73-87.

Are you studying a particular phenomena in its own right ORto provide information and insight into a broad range ofsimilar phenomena?

Clues thesis title, research aim, discussion and conclusionchapters.


10/21


Case Study Study

It will not mention the specific area, topicor case in the aim of your thesis

It will mention the specific area, topic orcase in the aim of your thesis.

It will not mention the specific area, topicor case in the title of your thesis

It will mention the particular phenomenayou are studying in the title of your thesis.

It will use your discussion and conclusionchapters to generalise the findings of yourresearch to a broader context.

It will be limited significantly in its ability togeneralise the findings.


11/21

Thesis StructureCase Study: Communicating Campaign Messages

Effectively

Study: A Communications Audit of the 1998

Australian Federal Election

Title: Communicating campaign messageseffectively.

Title: A communications audit of the 1998Australian Federal Election

Aim: to analyse effective communicationstrategies during election campaigns

Aim : to analyse how effective politicians were incommunicating their messages to voters during the

1998 campaignBackground: describe campaign communicationstrategies; review best practice internationally.

Background : describe and track key campaignmessages used by John Howard and Kim Beazleyduring the campaign

Method: Hypothesis is that commercial strategiesused by pollies to communicate; select case studymethod; select 1998 AFE (may be select anothercase?)

Method : demonstrate HOW key campaignmessages were traced speeches to media tovoters.

Results: List key campaign messages their mediacoverage and the extent to which votersconsidered these agendas salient.

Results : list key campaign messages their mediacoverage and the extent to which votersconsidered these agenda salient

Discussion: generalise findings; develop list ofeffective communication strategies

Discussion : lessons learned from the 1998 AFEcampaign - what worked and what didnt?


12/21

How to Conduct Case Study Research?

1. Determine and define the research questionsLook at Elaine Sharplins PhD thesis, UWA, 2008

http://theses.library.uwa.edu.au/adt-U2008.0211/public/02whole.pdf

multiple site, collective case study designyoung novices, mature-aged novices, interstate and overseasqualified teachersRQ1: what are the perspectives of teachers in relation to thequality of their worklife?RQ2: How do young novices, mature-aged novices, interstate andoverseas qualified teachers deal with their experiences?questionnaires, interviews, observation, journals, documents, fieldnotes and memos


13/21

How to Conduct Case Study Research?13

2. Select the cases and determine data gathering andanalysis techniques

Geddes, Barbara. 1990. "How the Cases You Choose Affect theAnswers You Get: Selection Bias in Comparative Politics." Political

Analysis 2:131-150.3. Prepare to collect the data4. Collect data in the field (look at Merriam for field note

tips - Merriam, S. B. Qualitative Research and Case Study Applications in Education. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco:

1998).5. Evaluate and analyse the data6. Prepare the report


14/21

What does it look like?


15/21

Analysis Goals

how and why questions

Triangulation

original findings

accurate and reliable

systematic method for deliberately sorting data

cross check and verify data


16/21

Analysis Techniques

Holistic interpretation or codingCoding = labels to classify, categorise and assign meaning to your data

Initial and focused coding

Qualitative software or by hand

Lewis, R. Barry. 2004. "NVivo 2.0 and Atlis.ti 5.0: A Comparative Review of Two PopularQualitative Data-Analysis Programs." Field Methods 16 (4):439-469 .

Master coding sheetMerriam, Sharan B. 1998. "Chapter 6: Mining Data From Documents." Pp. 112-133 inQualitative Research and Case Study Applications in Education (Revised Edition). SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.


17/21

Good case studies?

.. case studies should be evaluated in termsof the adequacy of the theoretical inferences

that can be generated. The aim is not to

infer findings from a sample to apopulation, but to engender patterns and

linkages of theoretical importance.

Source: Bryman (1989:173)


18/21

Critical Issues in Case Study Research

ReliabilityConstruct validityInternal validity

External validityExtent to which findings can be extrapolated and generalised

Eisenhart, Margaret A. and Kenneth R. Howe. 1992. "Chapter 14: Validity inEducational Research." Pp. 643-680 in Handbook of Qualitative Research inEducation, edited by M. D. LeCompte, W. L. Millroy, and J. Preissle. San Diego:

Academic Press.Mathison, Sandra. 1988. "Why Triangulate?" Educational Researcher 17 (2):13-17.


19/21

Westgrens Burden of Proof?

is the technique you have used appropriate to the researchquestion?have you applied the technique properly?does your analysis follow the conventions of the technique in

your field, or in other social science fields?have you provided a "chain of evidence" in obtaining andarchiving data?is your case study tied to appropriate theory?


20/21

Five misunderstandings about case study research

Flyvbjerg Five misunderstandings about case-study researchhttp://flyvbjerg.plan.aau.dk/MSFiveMis9.oSageASPUBL.pdf

1. No. 1. General, theoretical knowledge is more valuable than concrete, practicalknowledge.

2. No. 2. One cannot generalize on the basis of an individual case; therefore, thecase study cannot contribute to scientific development.

3. No. 3. The case study is most useful for generating hypotheses, that is, in thefirst stage of a total research process, while other methods are more suitable forhypotheses testing and theory-building.

4. No. 4. The case study contains a bias towards verification, that is, a tendency toconfirm the researchers preconceived notions.

5. No. 5. It is often difficult to summarize and develop general propositions andtheories on the basis of specific case studies.


21/21

Is it really for me?

http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR3-2/tellis1.html