Methods Brief: Case Studies, Schemes and Mind Maps of Statistics

Download Methods Brief: Case Studies and more Schemes and Mind Maps Statistics in PDF only on Docsity! November 2021 This project was supported by Grant No. 2018-86-CX-K038 awarded by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Points of view in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the US Department of Justice. Methods Brief: Case Studies Kay Chopard and Roger Przybylski Introduction The case study is a method or strategy that is com- monly used in criminal justice research, but one that also is often misunderstood in terms of its potential applications and capacity for scientific rigor. This research methods brief presents the basic character- istics of a case study, and it sets out the ways case studies can be used. It also attempts to dispel common misperceptions about case studies and presents key factors to consider when planning and designing case study research. While this brief is written primarily for researchers, others who are interested in an introduc- tion to case studies may also find the content informa- tive. Definition and Key Elements In the social sciences, the term, “case study” refers to both a method of analysis and a specific research design for conducting empirical inquiry (USC Libraries, 2020). Some researchers refer to the case study as a research strategy rather than a design or method. Since any case study can involve a combination of methodologies, describing it as a strategy arguably better captures the full range of applications for which a case study can be used, as well as its unique value in relation to other approaches for answering research questions. Yin (1990) has defined a case study as “an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenome- non 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” (p. 23). The phenomenon being researched is studied in its natural context, and typically there is a dedicated focus on the links between the phenomena and its contextual interrelationships, and what the links can tell us about either the uniqueness of the case or its generalizability to comparable relationships (Durepos & Wiebe, 2010). “In general, case studies are the preferred research strategy when ‘how’ or ’why’ questions are being posed, when the investigator has little control over events, and when the focus is on a contemporary phenomenon within some real-life con- text” (Yin, 1990, p. 13). Case study research typically relies on multiple sources of evidence, including documents, direct observation, and systematic interviewing. It is richly descriptive because it is grounded in deep and varied sources of information and its “unique strength is its ability to deal with a full variety of evidence” (Yin, 1990, p. 20). Information is explored and mined in the case study environment for a more thorough examination of the given phenomenon (Algozinne and Hancock, 2006). The methods used in a case study can rest within quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-method investiga- tive paradigms (Algozinne and Hancock, 2006). A case study typically examines a program, place, event(s), or other phenomenon for exploratory, de- scriptive, or explanatory purposes. An Exploratory Case Study is used to develop an initial understanding of the program or phenomenon of interest. The focus is on discovery for the purpose of obtaining an empirically based introduction to the structure, dynamics and context of the subject of interest. Exploratory case studies are particularly use- ful for developing hypotheses to be tested, research questions to be answered, and/or design options to be used in a more focused and in-depth subsequent study. In evaluation settings, an exploratory case study can be used to explore a program’s logic, theory of ac- 2 JRSA Research Methods Brief: Case Studies tion (or change), or expectations for results, as well as a program’s overall evaluability. While exploratory case studies probe into and shed light on what’s essentially unknown, they should be guided by a specific purpose or set of propositions that focus and frame the inquiry. A Descriptive Case Study is used to describe a program, situation or phenomenon, and provide a clear picture of what is happening and who is involved. Sometimes referred to an illustrative case study, it helps make the unfamiliar familiar, provide surrogate experience, avoid over-simplification of reality, and give the tar- get audience for study findings a clear and common understanding of the “case” being studied. Arguably the most common type of case study used in criminal justice research, descriptive case studies are particu- larly valuable for documenting similarities and differ- ences across multiple implementations of a program model or type. An Explanatory Case Study is typically used to answer “how” and “why” questions about a particular phe- nomenon. As the name implies, the focus is on expla- nation rather than mere description, such as how and why a program’s expected outcomes were or were not attained. Explanatory case studies are particularly use- ful for discovering the reasons for a program’s success or failure. Yin (1990) has suggested that in an ex- planatory case study, competing explanations for the dynamics or events of interest should be posed and tested for best fit (p.16). While case studies have been viewed by some as lacking generalizability and the level of rigor needed to produce trustworthy conclu- sions about how and why particular events occurred, a properly designed and executed explanatory case study can indeed produce highly credible and general- izable conclusions (Yin, 1990, p. 21). Case Study Applications It is important to recognize that a case study can be undertaken for multiple or overlapping purposes, and that many different types of case study applications can fall into the exploratory, descriptive, and explan- atory case study categories described above.¹ While presenting a comprehensive inventory of case study applications or types is beyond the scope of this report, several common applications are briefly de- scribed below. A pilot case study is exploratory in nature and typically used in a formative manner to help plan a subsequent, more in-depth study. It can be used to inform or refine the scope, focus, and procedures of a future study, including the types of theories or hypotheses to be tested, the research questions to be answered, and the feasibility of using various research designs, data sources, or data collection methods. A program implementation case study is used to deter- mine whether a program has been properly or suc- cessfully implemented. These case studies typically attempt to identify factors that facilitated or hindered the program implementation process. These case studies can be used to determine whether a program is in compliance with legislative intent or has been implemented with fidelity to a specific program plan or model. Multiple cases or sites are often used to deter- mine whether and to what degree variation has taken place across multiple implementations of a program model or type. Findings from these studies can be used to better understand variations in program out- comes discovered through other forms of inquiry. A program effects case study is used to determine the effects or impacts of a program and illustrate reasons for successes or failures. Since other methods can be more adept at isolating effects and establishing causality in controlled situations, these case studies are often used to answer “how” and “why” questions about program effects. They attempt to unpack what’s inside the “black box” of a program and explain the mechanisms or actions through which program effects or impacts take place. A critical instance case study examines one, or very few, instances of an event or phenomenon for a very specific purpose. The case study is used to thoroughly investigate the event, and great diligence is taken to ensure that important factors have not been over- looked, that the context for the event has been fully considered, and that the empirical findings from the study are not based on limited or biased information. The approach is well-suited for answering cause-and- effect questions, and providing a comprehensive, bal- ¹Some scholars even expand upon these categories or focus on entirely different ones when describing case study types. Nevertheless, the categorization of case studies as exploratory, descriptive, or explanatory has a long history in the literature, and it can be helpful for understanding the nature of case study research and conceptualizing the purpose and focus of case study inquiry in practical settings. 5 JRSA Research Methods Brief: Case Studies the use of thick description and quotations or narratives. Thick Description Since thick description is highly relevant for case study research and a key indicator of scientific rigor in qualitative inquiry generally, its meaning and essential elements are summarized below. Thick description provides a highly detailed account of the phenomenon being studied to enable a deep understanding of not only what took place and how it took place, but also of the broader context. It goes beyond the surface to portray “people, events and actions within their locally meaningful contexts” (Yin, 2011, p. 213). “A thick description … does more than record what a person is doing. It presents detail, con- text, emotion, and the webs of social relationships that join persons to one another” (Denzin, 1989, p. 83). It is important to recognize that thick description is not achieved simply by presenting a sufficient level of de- tail. “Rather to thickly describe social action is actually to begin to interpret it by recording the circumstanc- es, meanings, intentions, strategies, motivations, and so on that characterize a particular episode. It is this interpretive characteristic of description rather than detail per se that makes it thick” (Schwandt, 2001, p. 255). Thick description provides the context for an act, “states the intentions and meanings that organize the action, traces the evolution and development of the act,” and “presents the action as a text that can then be interpreted” (Denzin, 1989, p. 33). Building on the work of Denzin (1989), Schwandt (2001) and others,³ Ponterotto summarized the key elements of thick description in the following manner. Thick description accurately describes and interprets social interactions within the context in which they occurred. It captures participants’ thoughts and emo- tions and assigns motivations and intentions to social actions (2006, pp. 542-543). Finally, thick description uses quotations and narra- tives (or vignettes) to explain situations and their con- text, and to give voice to the perceptions and feelings of those involved in the phenomenon being studied, and the meanings behind actions (Denzin, 1989, p. 83; Ponterotto, 2006, p. 540). Summary Case studies are a discrete and valuable form of re- search, with a variety of approaches that serve dif- ferent purposes. Having a clear understanding of the purposes, elements, and strengths of each form can maximize the value of this methodology. References Algozzine, B. and Hancock, D.R. (2006). Doing Case Study Research: A Practical Guide for Beginning Research- ers. New York: Teachers College Press. Denzin, Norman K. (1989). Interpretive Interactionism. Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Durepos G., Mills A.J., & Wiebe E (2010). Encyclopedia of Case Study Research. Los Angeles: SAGE Publica- tions. GAO (1990). Case Study Evaluations. Washington, DC: GAO, p. 15. https://www.gao.gov/assets/pemd- 10.1.9.pdf. Ponterotto, J. G. (2006). Brief Note on the Origins, Evolution, and Meaning of the Qualitative Research Concept Thick Description. The Qualitative Report, 11(3), 538-549. Retrieved from http://nsuworks.nova. edu/tqr/vol11/iss3/6 Schwandt, T. A. (2001). Dictionary of Qualitative Inquiry (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA. Sage Publications. Stake, Robert E., (1995). The Art of Case Study Research. Thousand Oaks, CA. Sage Publications. USC Libraries (2020). “Research Guides: Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper: Writing a Case Study,” USC Library Guides. Los Angeles: University of South- ern California. https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/ ³The concept of thick description can be traced to the work of British philosopher Gilbert Ryle in the 1960s. Ryle first used the term as a philosophical construct to describe the importance of context when attributing intentions to behavior. American anthropologist Clifford Geertz subsequently borrowed the term in the early 1970s to describe ethnography in his field. Norman Denzin is often credited with introducing the term and concept to other disciplines and explaining what thick description entails in his 1989 publication Interpretive Interactionism. 6 JRSA Research Methods Brief: Case Studies casestudy. Yin, Robert K., (2017). Case Study Research and Appli- cations, Design and Methods, Sixth Edition. Thousand Oaks, SAGE Publications. Yin, Robert K. (2011). Qualitative Research from Start to Finish. New York, NY. The Guilford Press. Yin, Robert K. (1990). Case Study Research, Design and Methods. Revised Edition. Applied Social Research Methods Series Volume 5. Newbury Park, CA: SAGE Publications.