Case Study

• What is the definition of a case study?

  An in-depth study of one person or group
• What types of sources are used in a case study?

  Individual, family, and friends
• What techniques are commonly used in case studies?

  Psychological tests, observations, interviews, experiments
• What type of data is produced by case studies?

  Qualitative data about subjective feelings
• What are the advantages of case studies?

  • Rich, in-depth qualitative data
  • Great insight and detail
  • Evidence can challenge theories
  • Complex interactions of factors studied
• What are the disadvantages of case studies?

  • Difficult to generalize (low population validity)
  • Subjective, may have investigator bias
  • Difficult to replicate, affecting reliability
• Why is it difficult to generalize findings from case studies?

  Each person has unique factors
• How can investigator bias affect case studies?

  It may distort information to fit theories
• What impact does the difficulty of replication have on case studies?

  It affects the reliability of results