Case Study

Case Study and Action Research

As mentioned, a case study may be an in-depth study of an individual, a group or team or a larger unit such as a community or organization. Medical case studies, for example, are often studies of a person with a condition that is theoretically or practically interesting. Several of the early anthropological case studies were of whole communities. Case studies may also be studies [Page 87]of a small number of such units. Other case studies research phenomena, for example, entrepreneurship in a particular market or poverty. The studied phenomenon is researched in its normal setting and (in most definitions) is in some way bounded or limited.

Such definitions fit all or almost all action research studies. Action research might therefore be regarded as a subset of case study. Both case study and action research favour (or at least espouse) the integration of theory and practice. Both take place in the field rather than in the laboratory. Both can be qualitative, quantitative or mixed, though qualitative approaches predominate. With a few exceptions, both are responsive to the researched situation rather than being an exploration of a precise research question derived from theory, though examples of theory testing can be found in each. Both are likely to be holistic rather than reductionist, seeking to understand the whole unit or phenomenon as it is.

As Stake has pointed out, there are many studies that fit the definition of case study without being labelled as such. With wide variation in methods, case study is not so much a methodology as a research genre. On these grounds, some authors have proposed abandoning ‘case study’ as a research description, recommending instead a label more explanatory of the actual methodology used.

The case study researcher or action researcher can choose from any methodology that allows in-depth study of the social unit or phenomenon. Research situations also show some similarity: Both action research and case study are increasingly common in fields that retain an interest in practical applications, like nursing or information technology.

While remaining consistent with definitions of case study, typical action research approaches exhibit features that case studies may lack. Action research is almost always interventionist—it seeks to engage with the studied situation and to change it. Most other case studies prefer to leave the studied situation untouched as far as possible. Action research is almost always (most would say always) participatory, involving those in the research situation as partners and not just as informants. Conventional case study research seldom does so, though this may be slowly changing. In some action research studies, the participants become full partners in the research. Action research reports may be co-authored by the researcher and the participants, while fewer case studies are.

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