Case study
A case study design consists of data collection via a combination of observations, interviews, and/or selected written documents/audiovisual material that is collected and collated for data analysis.
History
As a distinct approach to research, use of the case study originated only in the early 20th century. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the phrase case study or case-study back as far as 1934, after the establishment of the concept of a case history in medicine. The use of case studies for the creation of new theory in social sciences has been further developed by the sociologists Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss who presented their research method, Grounded theory, in 1967.
There are multiple types of case studies including: [1]
- illustrative case studies
- exploratory case studies* critical instance case studies
- program effects case studies
- prospective case studies
- cumulative case studies
- narrative case studies
- medical case studies
- and embedded case studies
Principal Use
The principal use of a case study design approach is to understand a single case or single situation (which could include a small group of people) in significant depth through qualitative observational methods in the case’s natural setting.
Advantages
Case studies provide a systematic way of looking at events, collecting data, analyzing information, and reporting the results. They are relatively easy to perform and are fairly intuitive. They also are useful in generating and in testing hypotheses.
Shortcomings
Limited ability to generalize to other situations outside the specific cases examined and bias.
Examples in Informatics
- Gagnon MP, Duplantie J, Fortin JP, Landry R. Exploring the effects of telehealth on medical human resources supply: a qualitative case study in remote regions. BMC Health Serv Res. 2007 Jan 11;7:6. PMID: 17217534 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
- Aldrich R, Bonevski B, Wilson A. A case study on determining and responding to health managers' priorities for research to assist health service decision making. Aust Health Rev. 2006 Nov;30(4):435-41. PMID: 17073537 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
- Bomba D, Land T. The feasibility of implementing an electronic prescribing decision supportsystem: a case study of an Australian public hospital. Aust Health Rev. 2006 Aug;30(3):380-8. PMID: 16879097 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
- Koppel R, Metlay JP, Cohen A, Abaluck B, Localio AR, Kimmel SE, Strom BL. Role of computerized physician order entry systems in facilitating medication errors. JAMA. 2005 Mar 9;293(10):1197-203. PMID: 15755942 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
