Pilot and case studies

• Case studies are very detailed investigations of an individual or small group of people, usually regarding an unusual phenomenon or biographical event of interest to a research field. Due to a small sample, the case study can conduct an in-depth analysis of the individual/group.
• Typically, data is gathered from a variety of sources and by using several different methods (e.g. observations & interviews).

  The case study is not itself a ‘research method’, but researchers select methods of data collection and analysis that will generate material suitable for case studies.
• Producing qualitative data - Qualitative data is non-numerical language-based data collected through interviews, open questions and content analysis. It allows researchers to develop insights into the nature of subjective experiences, opinions and feelings
• A case history is constructed – To do this they may use:

  ‒ Interviews

  ‒ Questionnaires

  ‒ Psychological testing

  ‒ Interviews with family

  ‒ May be longitudinal
• Case study Strengths:

  • Case studies create opportunities for a rich yield of data, and the depth of analysis can in turn bring high levels of validity (i.e. providing an accurate and exhaustive measure of what the study is hoping to measure).
• Case study strengths:

  • Studying abnormal psychology can give insight into how something works when it is functioning correctly, such as brain damage on memory (e.g. the case study HM, whose short-term memory was impaired the removal of his hippocampus).
  • The detail collected on a single case may lead to interesting findings that conflict with current theories, and stimulate new paths for research
• Case study limitation:

  • There is little control over a number of variables involved in a case study, so it is difficult to confidently establish any causal relationships between variables.
  • Case studies are unusual by nature, so will have poor reliability as replicating them exactly will be unlikely.
• Case study limitation:

  • Due to the small sample size, it is unlikely that findings from a case study alone can be generalised to a whole population.
  • The case study’s researcher may become so involved with the study that they exhibit bias in their interpretation and presentation of the data, making it challenging to distinguish what is truly objective/factual
• Pilot Studies - Summary

  -Whilst we can do everything we can to try and make research perfect, there are nearly always flaws.

  -To iron out flaws early, we do pilot studies – these are small scale trial run of research design before doing the real thing. Pilot studies help to:

  • This establishes whether the design works
  • Whether participants understand the wording of the instructions
  • Problems can be sorted out before the MAIN STUDY
  • saves a lot of time and money