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Research Methods and Design

A guide on common research methods.

Definition

Case Study

a research strategy whose characteristics include

  • a focus on the interrelationships that constitute the context of a specific entity (such as an organization, event, phenomenon, or person),
  • analysis of the relationship between the contextual factors and the entity being studied, and
  • the explicit purpose of using those insights (of the interactions between contextual relationships and the entity in question) to generate theory and/or contribute to extant theory. 
Mills, A. J., Durepos, G., & Wiebe, E. (Eds.) (2010). Encyclopedia of case study research. SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781412957397

SAGE Research Methods Videos

What is the value of working with case studies?

Professor Todd Landman explains how case studies can be used in research. He discusses the importance of choosing a case study correctly and warns about limitations of case study research.

Landman Ph.D., T. (Academic). (2017). An introduction to case studies [Video]. SAGE Research Methods Video https://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781473964587

This is just one segment in a series about case studies. You can find the rest of the series in our SAGE database, Research Methods:

Further Reading