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This article examines five common misunderstandings about case-study research: (1) Theoretical knowledge is more valuable than practical knowledge; (2) One cannot generalize from a single case, therefore the single case study cannot contribute to scientific development; (3) The case study is most useful for generating hypotheses, while other methods are more suitable for hypotheses testing and theory building; (4) The case study contains a bias toward verification; and (5) It is often difficult to summarize specific case studies. The article explains and corrects these misunderstandings one by one and concludes with the Kuhnian insight that a scientific discipline without a large number of thoroughly executed case studies is a discipline without systematic production of exemplars, and that a discipline without exemplars is an ineffective one. Social science may be strengthened by the execution of more good case studies.
Table of Contents
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Volume I: Case Study Contexts
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Origins and History
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1. Statistics and Case Studies as Methods of Sociological Research
Ernest Burgess
1927
Sociology and Social Research
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2. The Case Study as a Research Method
Percival Symonds
1945
Review of Educational Research
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Paul Foreman
1948
Social Forces
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4. Case and Situation Analysis
J. Mitchell
1983
Sociological Review
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5. “Case Study” in American Methodological Thought
Jennifer Platt
1992
Current Sociology
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Contemporary Meanings of Case Study
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6. Making the Case for Case Study
W. Kenny | Arden Grotelueschen
1984
Grotelueschen Journal of Curriculum Studies
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7. What Is a Case Study and What Is It Good for?
John Gerring
2004
American Political Science Review
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8. What Is This a Case of? Exploring Some Conceptual Issues in Case Study Research
Suzanne Wilson | Sigrun Gudmundsdottir
1987
Education and Urban Society
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Rob VanWynsberghe | Samia Khan
2007
International Journal of Qualitative Methods
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10. The Case Study Challenge – A New Approach to an Old Method
Tsilia Romm | Sophia Mahler
1991
Management Education and Development (now known as Management Learning)
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11. The Harvard Business School Story: Avoiding Knowledge by Being Relevant
Ianna Contardo | Robin Wensley
2004
Organization
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The Relationship Between Case Study and Other Methodologies
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Volume II: Case Study Design
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Overall Design
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Ian Macpherson | Ross Brooker | Paul Ainsworth
2000
International Journal of Social Research Methodology
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22. A Case in Case Study Methodology
Christine Meyer
2001
Field Methods
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23. Identification of Ambiguity in the Case Study Research Typology: What Is a Unit of Analysis?
Niels Grünbaum
2007
Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal
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Types of Case Study
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24. Case Study Principles for Different Types of Cases
J. Cunningham
1997
Cunningham Quality & Quantity
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25. Types of Case Study Work: A Conceptual Framework for Case-Based Research
David Edwards
1998
Journal of Humanistic Psychology
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26. Case Studies: Types, Designs, and Logics of Inference
Jack Levy
2008
Conflict Management and Peace Science
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Gary Thomas
2011
Qualitative Inquiry
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Sampling/Selection
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28. Process Sampling: A Method for Case Study Research on Administrative Behavior
Charles McClintock
1985
Educational Administration Quarterly
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Sarah Curtis | Wil Gesler | Glenn Smith | Sarah Washburn
2000
Social Science & Medicine
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30. Site Selection within Comparative Case Study and Ethnographic Research
Geoffrey Walford
2001
Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education
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31. Case Selection Techniques in Case Study Research: A Menu of Qualitative and Quantitative Options
Jason Seawright | John Gerring
2008
Political Research Quarterly
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Particular Kinds of Case Study
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32. Using Stake's Qualitative Case Study Approach to Explore Implementation of Evidence-Based Practice
Sheryl Boblin | Sandra Ireland | Helen Kirkpatrick | Kim Robertson
2013
Qualitative Health Research
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33. Single-Outcome Studies: A Methodological Primer
John Gerring
2006
International Sociology
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34. The Comparative Case Study Approach in Public Administration
Robert Agranoff | Beryl Radin
1991
Research in Public Administration
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35. Pedagogic Research into Singularities: Case-Studies, Probes and Curriculum Innovations
Michael Bassey
1983
Oxford Review of Education
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36. The Case-Study Model: An Organizational Strategy for Cross-Cultural Evaluation
Gila Garaway
1996
Evaluation
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37. The “Too Few Cases/Too Many Variables” Problem in Implementation Research
Malcolm Goggin
1986
The Western Political Quarterly (now known as Political Research Quarterly)
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Volume III: Issues with Case Study
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Overviews
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38. The Case Study Crisis: Some Answers
Robert Yin
1981
Administrative Science Quarterly
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39. Case Study as a Research Strategy: Some Ambiguities and Opportunities
Piet Verschuren
2003
International Journal of Social Research Methodology
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40. Five Misunderstandings About Case-Study Research
Bent Flyvbjerg
2006
Qualitative Inquiry
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Generalisation
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41. A Research Design for Generalizing from Multiple Case Studies
David Greene | Jane David
1984
Evaluation and Program Planning
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42. On Generalising from Single Case Studies: Epistemological Reflections
Colin Evers | Echo Wu
2006
Journal of Philosophy of Education
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43. The Case: Generalisation, Theory and Phronesis in Case Study
Gary Thomas
2011
Oxford Review of Education
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Lars Mjóset
2006
International Sociology
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45. Drawing Lessons from Case Studies by Enhancing Comparability
Attilia Ruzzene
2012
Philosophy of the Social Sciences
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Validity, Reliability, Etc.
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46. What Passes as a Rigorous Case Study?
Michael Gibbert | Winfried Ruigrok | Barbara Wicki
2008
Strategic Management Journal
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Thomas Diefenbach
2009
Quality & Quantity
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48. Validity and Generalization in Future Case Study Evaluations
Robert Yin
2013
Evaluation
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Other Issues
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49. Strategies of Causal Inference in Small-N Analysis
James Mahoney
2000
Sociological Methods & Research
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50. Cumulating the Intellectual Gold of Case Study Research
Jason L. | Robert Rodgers
2001
Public Administration Review
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51. Epistemology as Ethics in Research and Policy: The Use of Case Studies
John Elliott | Dominik Lukeš
2008
Journal of Philosophy of Education
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Case Study and Theory
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52. Building Theories from Case Study Research
Kathleen Eisenhardt
1989
Academy of Management Review
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53. Eisenhardt's Impact on Theory in Case Study Research
Katherine Ravenswood
2011
Journal of Business Research
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David Thacher
2006
American Journal of Sociology
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55. Doing Case Study: Abduction Not Induction, Phronesis Not Theory
Gary Thomas
2010
Qualitative Inquiry
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56. Troubling Theory in Case Study Research
Martyn Hammersley
2012
Higher Education Research & Development
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57. Meta-Synthesis of Qualitative Case Studies: An Approach to Theory Building
Christina Hoon
2013
Organizational Research Methods
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Volume IV: The Use of Case Studies in Different Disciplines
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Accounting
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58. Case Study Research in Accounting
David Cooper | Wayne Morgan
2008
Accounting Horizons
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59. Value Chains, Partnerships and Development: Using Case Studies to Refine Programme Theories
Sietze Vellema | Giel Ton | Nina de Roo | Jeroen van Wijk
2013
Evaluation
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Education
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60. Case Study in Comparative Education: Particularity and Generalisation
Lawrence Stenhouse
1979
Comparative Education
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61. A Case Study of a Case Study: Analysis of a Robust Qualitative Research Methodology
Catherine Snyder
2012
The Qualitative Report
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Health
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62. The Case Study as a Scientific Method for Researching Alternative Therapies
David Lukoff | David Edwards | Martha Miller
1998
Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine
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Industrial Marketing Management
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Michael Beverland | Adam Lindgreen
2010
Industrial Marketing Management
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Information Systems
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64. Case Study Research: A Multi-Faceted Research Approach for IS
A.L.M. Cavaye
1996
Information Systems Journal
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Line Dubé | Guy Paré
2003
MIS Quarterly
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International Business
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66. The Case Study as Disciplinary Convention: Evidence from International Business Journals
Rebecca Piekkari | Catherine Welch | Eriikka Paavilainen
2009
Organizational Research Methods
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Law
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Darrel Caulley | Irene Dowdy
1987
Evaluation and Program Planning
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Operations Management
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68. Case Research in Operations Management
Chris Voss | Nikos Tsikriktsis | Mark Frohlich
2002
International Journal of Operations & Production Management
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Psychoanalysis
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69. The Psychoanalytic Case Study: Toward a Method for Systematic Inquiry
Enrico Jones | Michael Windholz
1990
Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association
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Public Administration
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70. The Single Case Study as Intellectually Ambitious Inquiry
Michael Barzelay
1993
Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory: J-PART
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71. The Case Study Method for Research in Small- and Medium-Sized Firms
Sylvie Chetty
1996
International Small Business Journal
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Social Work
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72. How to Critically Evaluate Case Studies in Social Work
Eunjung Lee | Faye Mishna | Sarah Brennenstuhl
2010
Research on Social Work Practice
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