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IS8004 Seminar 5

IS8004 Seminar 5. The Case Study. A Case Study is an empirical inquiry that:. …investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when …the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident ( Yin 2002 ). Epistemology?. Case studies can be

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IS8004 Seminar 5

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  1. IS8004 Seminar 5 The Case Study

  2. A Case Study is an empirical inquiry that: • …investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when • …the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident (Yin 2002).

  3. Epistemology? • Case studies can be • Positivist (e.g. Benbasat et al., 1987) • Interpretivist (e.g. Walsham, 1993) • Critical (e.g. Myers, 1994) • Case studies can also be • Exploratory, Descriptive or Explanatory • Case studies are very suitable to answer ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions

  4. When To Use the Case Study Method? • The case study is preferred in examining contemporary events, but when the relevant behaviors cannot be manipulated. • Case studies rely on direct observation, and systematic interviewing. • Case studies do not permit experimental manipulations and controls are very hard to enact

  5. Criticisms of the Method • Insufficient rigour • Compared to experimental research • But actually experiments are not automatically precise or unbiased • Inadequate basis for generalisation • Which is why multiple cases are conducted • The results of a case study investigation can be generalised to theory and can inform theory development

  6. Key Components • Research questions - how and why • Research propositions (if any) but not hypotheses • That reflect an important theoretical issue and indicate where to look for relevant evidence • Unit(s) of analysis • What are we studying? Units, people, individuals? • What does the data describe? • Logic that links the data to the propositions • The criteria for interpreting the findings.

  7. Single Case Design • The focal case is used to test a well-formulated theory • The case meets all the criteria for testing the theory • The case represents an extreme or unique case • The revelatory case • A situation that occurs when the investigator has an opportunity to observe and analyze a phenomenon previously inaccessible to scientific investigation. • A single case may have multiple units of analysis

  8. Multiple Case Design • This means that the same study has two or more cases • The evidence from multiple cases is often considered more compelling, which makes the overall study more robust. • Undertaking a multiple case study can require extensive resources and time beyond the means of a single researcher. • Each case must be chosen carefully and specifically • The cases should have similar results (a literal replication) or contrary results (a theoretical replication) predicted explicitly at the outset of the investigation.

  9. Multiple Case Design • It is important in a replication process to develop a rich, theoretical framework. • The framework needs to state the conditions under which a particular phenomenon is likely to be found (literal replication) and the conditions under when it is not likely to be found (theoretical replication). • The individual cases within a multiple-case study design may be either holistic or embedded. • When an embedded design is used each individual case study may in fact include the collection and analysis of highly quantitative data, e.g. surveys.

  10. Conducting Case Studies 1 • Preparation for Data Collection • The researcher should • be able to ask good questions • be a good listener • be adaptive and flexible • have a firm grasp of the issues being studied • be unbiased by preconceived notions • For the specific context of the case study and organisation

  11. Conducting Case Studies 2 • The researcher must be able to make intelligent decisions about the data being collected. • This will require knowledge about • why the study is being done; • what evidence is being sought; • what variations can be anticipated • what would constitute supportive or contrary evidence for any given proposition • Survey or interview designers also need to know the purpose of the survey and the nature of the analysis that will follow

  12. Case Study Protocol • The protocol should include • An overview of the case study project (project, substantive issues, relevant reading) • Field procedures (how to gain access to interviewees, planning for sufficient resources, providing for unanticipated events etc) • Case study questions (about individuals, multiple cases, entire study, normative questions about policy recommendations and conclusions

  13. Pilot Case Study • It may be sensible to conduct a small-scale pilot case study first so as to test procedures and protocols • The pilot can be more convenient so as to train research team members and even act as a "laboratory" • The research questions can be broader and less focused than the ultimate data collection plan. • The pilot reports can provide lessons for both research design and field procedures

  14. Sources of Evidence • There are six forms of evidence • Documentation • Archival records • Interviews • Direct observations • Participant observations • Physical Artifacts

  15. Documents, Archives & Artifacts • Current organisational documents • Policies, practices, templates • Historical archive records • Past practices, reports on past projects • These two forms of data are useful for corroborating evidence from other sources • Artifacts include physical objects like certificates, awards, etc.

  16. Interviews • Case study interviews are usually open-ended • Focused interviews can still be open-ended but involve following specific questions derived from the case study protocol • More structured questions, along the lines of a formal survey. • A structured interview would involve the sampling procedures and the instruments used in regular surveys, and it would subsequently be analyzed in a similar manner.

  17. Direct Observations • By making a field visit to the case study "site", the investigator is creating the opportunity for direct observations. • To increase the reliability of observational evidence, a common procedure is to have more than one observer making an observation, whether formally or casually.

  18. Participant Observations • The research may play a variety of roles within a case situation and may actually participate in the events being studied. • The researcher (e.g. if an insider) may be able to gain access to events or groups that are otherwise inaccessible to scientific investigation. • Researchers have to be aware of potential bias. If they work as an insider, they cannot maintain outside independence. • They could become a supporter or defender.

  19. Principles of Data Collection 1 • Using multiple sources of evidence • The opportunity to use multiple sources of evidence in case studies far exceeds that in other research methods such as experiments or surveys. • The use of multiple sources of evidence in case studies allows an investigator to address a broader range of historical and observational issues. • It also enables better triangulation of findings • It contributes to a holistic understanding of a case and indeed contributes to theorisation.

  20. Principles of Data Collection 2 • Creating a case study database • The lack of a formal database for most case study efforts is a major shortcoming of case study research. • Four components should be contained in a database created for case study research • Notes (including interview data) • Documents • Tabular materials (e.g. from surveys; structured interviews) • Narrative (stories; diaries).

  21. Principles of Data Collection 3 • Maintaining a chain of evidence • This is to allow an external observer - the reader of the case study for example - to follow the derivation of any evidence from initial research questions to ultimate case study conclusions. • The three principles are intended to make the data collection process as explicit as possible • Then the final results can adequately reflect construct validity and reliability, thereby becoming worthy of further analysis.

  22. Analyzing Case Study Evidence • Relying on theoretical propositions • The proposition helps • to focus attention on some data and to ignore others • to organize the entire case study and to define alternative explanations to be examined • Developing a case description • Develop a descriptive framework to organise the case study and identify • types of event or process or interaction • an overall ‘pattern’ of complexity that could be used to explain why an implementation failed.

  23. Modes of Analysis • Pattern matching • Comparing an empirically based pattern with a predicted one. If the patterns coincide, the results can help to strengthen a case study’s internal validity. • Explanation building • Analyze the data by building case explanations. • Time series analysis • Match data over time with: • A theoretically significant trend specified in advance • A rival trend, also specified in advance

  24. Case Study Report Writing • It is important to know the audience • Different audiences have different expectations • Thus, a primarily academic audience (MISQ) is not the same as one that includes managers and executives (HBR, SMR, CMR)

  25. Case Study Report Styles • Linear-analytic • Problem, methods, findings of data collection and analysis, conclusion. • Comparative • The same kind of case is repeated two or three times • Alternative descriptions or explanations can be compared. • Theory-building • Where case evidence is used to construct/ground a new theory • Suspense • Like a detective story, a murder mystery

  26. Standards of Excellence • Significance • Completeness • Alternative perspectives considered • Sufficient evidence displayed • An engaging, attractive and readable style • Failure cases can be as instructive as successful cases, if the explanations are persuasive

  27. References • Benbasat, I., Goldstein, D.K. and Mead, M. (1987) The Case Research Strategy in Studies of Information Systems, MISQ, 11, 3, 369-386. • Eisenhardt, K.M. (1989) Building Theories from Case Study Research, AMR, 14, 4, 532-550. • Lee, A.S. (1989) A Scientific Methodology for MIS Case Studies, MISQ, 13, 1, 33-50. • Myers, M.D. (1994) Quality in Qualitative Research in Information Systems, 5th Australasian Conference on Information Systems, 763-766. • Walsham, G. (1993) Interpreting Information Systems in Organizations, Wiley, Chichester. • Yin, R.K. (1991, 1998, 2003) Case Study Research: Design and Methods, Sage. • Yin, R.K. (1993, 2003) Applications of Case Study Research, Sage.

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