Individuals or small groups with unique circumstances
Atypical brain, rare to have identical brain damage cases
Combine primary and secondary data
Observations, PET scans, and experimental methods, allowing for comparison by triangulation and studying over long period
Case Study Evaluation
Strengths:
Measurements of brain damage (neuroimaging techniques - MRI, PET) are objective, easily replicated, therefore scientific
Brain-damaged patients are often tested in lab conditions with high experimental control; Schmolk et al (2002)
Weaknesses:
Gathers qualitative subjective data and may be unscientific; also relies on very unique, idiographic cases so results are ungeneralisable to wider populous
No ‘baseline’ data so cause and effect are difficult to establish; some may have been lacking before damage