Integrating Independent Case Studies

Conceptual Overview and Discussion

The rationale for integrating independent case studies is similar to that of comparative case studies. The compared studies, however, are not part of a predesigned research strategy, and the comparison emerges from an ex post facto realization by independent researchers that the insights derived from their studies can be enriched by comparative analyses. The selection of case studies for integration follows the replication logic discussed by Robert Yin and Kathleen Eisenhardt.

When independent studies examine the occurrence of the same phenomenon at different times, their integration provides an opportunity to analyze how contextual changes, which are inevitable with the passage of time, shape the focal issues under study. In the first example, Prue Rains and Eli Teram independently studied the strategies used by an institution for youth to control admissions and recruit desirable clients during two different historical periods (Rains, 1984, 1985; Teram, 1986, 1988). Because both studies concluded that the institution was more concerned about its own interests than about the needs of its young clients, the juxtaposition of the strategies used during different periods of time makes this argument more powerful and persuasive. Given the relative subtlety of organizational self-interests in Teram's study, and the more visible and direct pursuit of organizational interests studied by Rains, this comparison was particularly useful.

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Independent case studies can also be effectively integrated when they examine the same phenomenon within different contexts. The variations on the same theme across contexts broaden the generalization opportunities provided by a single case study. As demonstrated in the second example, Gerald Erickson and Teram integrated their independent examinations of the review of institutional placements of children in two Canadian provinces: Ontario and Québec. With different child welfare legislation, these provinces established very different systems for the review of institutional placements. By integrating their case studies, the researchers were able to argue that, notwithstanding their differences, both review mechanisms were designed in ways that inhibited the expression of conflict and disagreement that is essential for meaningful review processes. The construction of the arguments around more than one case broadens the scope of readers' critical reflections on other institutional review systems.

Application I: Examination of Same Phenomenon at Different Times

The Independent Case Studies

Rains conducted a historical case study of the Boys' Farm and Training School in Québec, Canada, using the institution's archival material, supplemented by archives of other institutions for youth-in-trouble and government documents (Rains, 1984, 1985). Her exploration of the history of this institution from 1907 through 1970 was informed by critical histories of social control institutions, which were salient in 1970s sociology. She identified four prolonged population crises that were experienced by the Boys' Farm, and her core analysis focused on the ways its directors managed these periods of decline and ensured the survival of the institution. The unit of analysis was the Boys' Farm.

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