Chronological Order

Conceptual Overview and Discussion

Chronological time and, by implication, chronological order are to a large extent culturally dependent. In agrarian or aboriginal cultures and in some belief systems where time (and thus order) is reckoned as seasonal, cyclical, or generational, the chronological construct is less useful for grasping meanings of time as it is experienced by members of that culture. Some indigenous cultures (e.g., Hopi Indians) hold the view that all events are in present time and have no conceptual use for past or future dimensions. In such situations the what of an event is of greater importance for that individual or group of individuals than the when of the event. Accounting for such conceptions in case study research means acknowledging the representation as one way of providing context that is external to the event and may not fit with individual depictions held by researchers unfamiliar with cultural variations.

Chronological ordering is a device for imposing structure in ways that attend to sequence and duration as might be perceived and measured through inquiry of some sort directed by the topic and issues of interest. Clocks and chronological time are fairly recent developments, used in early days as assistive devices for summoning the religious to worship, workers to industry, and as a navigational aid. The division of time into zones [Page 145]and yearly units into months, weeks, days, hours, minutes, and seconds has acted in fundamental ways that facilitate communication, commerce, and social cohesion around the globe.

Application

Consideration of the temporal domain in case study research applies beyond data arrangement and pertains to the researcher and sequencing of materials and methods used to gather data as well as ordering of data presentation in the research report. Chronological order is also known as natural order, as one event must precede or follow another event unless they occur simultaneously. Considering events in order of occurrence is a familiar device for organization such as can be found in stories that have a beginning, middle, and end, such as case studies presented in a narrative format.

Composition of a constructed story line depends on how the author chronologically organizes her or his procedures in order of processes and that guide inquiry. An inductive approach might derive from an existing framework imposing guidelines for the development of specific understandings, assumptions, and questions. A more deductive approach might consider events an issue for discovery of themes or central problematics, which then guide ordering and sequencing of subsequent steps, which may or may not be in chronological order. Order of encounter with issues as presented in research may thus cause different conceptions than issues first encountered in practice.

During initial problem development, the order in which related research is encountered may lead to or away from certain predispositions or attitudes toward the question or issue under examination. For example, a study of reading patterns may take a different turn if the author considers materials addressing matters of race, class, and gender prior to, or following, problem and question formulation. Topic and timing in the sequencing of questions or discovery of materials can predispose patterns of response or analysis visible as meaning-making occurs during data analysis. Interviewer skills also increase over time as familiarity and comfort with procedures grow. Transcripts may show the effects of chronological time and experience as a tenth interview is usually of higher quality and more insightful than a first interview.

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