Case studies and comparative perspectives

The term “case study” is highly polysemous and nonspecific, and this is precisely one of the points this course aims to address. Is any case a case? This is one of the questions we introduce as a provocation in this course, with the purpose of debating some fundamental issues from the theoretical and methodological perspective of case studies and their differences or similarities with other qualitative research strategies, such as Grounded Theory. In this sense, case studies are conceived as a research strategy based on the in-depth study of a small number of instances (or even a single one) in which the phenomenon of interest is addressed in its natural context. These instances under study can be microsocial units, such as individuals, or meso- or macrosocial units, such as institutions or countries. Another characteristic of case studies is that their methodological design is deductive or abductive, and therefore contrasts with the design of Grounded Theory—which is originally inductive and has subsequently adapted to an abductive logic. In this sense, the role of theory in case studies is much more important from the outset (in the methodological design phase) than in studies inspired by Grounded Theory.

GENERAL PURPOSE

The overall objective of the course is for participants to acquire the necessary knowledge base to formulate and implement empirical research designs based on case studies, taking into account their strengths and weaknesses.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

That the students:

● Understand how case studies are related to qualitative research in the social sciences.

● Learn about the methodological criticisms made of case studies from quantitative perspectives and the responses given to these questions from these traditions of social science research.

● Be able to distinguish the components of single-case research design and incorporate them into your research practice.

● Be able to distinguish the components of multiple case research design and be able to incorporate them into their research practice.

● Advance the discussion of case studies with comparative perspectives and their possibilities for analysis.

● Incorporate quality criteria into this type of design.

• Case studies as empirical research strategies
• Single case studies
• Case studies from different disciplinary approaches, a historical perspective
• Case studies as a research design
• Multiple case or comparative designs
• International comparative case studies
• Comparative case studies and comparative perspectives
• Comparative Case Studies in Public Policy
• Quality Criteria in Case Study Research

• Bartlett, L.; Vavrus, F. (2017). Rethinking case study research. A comparative approach.Routledge.
• Boufoy-Bastick, B. (2004). Self-interviewing, Auto-ethnography and critical incident methodology for eliciting a self-conceptualized worldview. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 5(1), Art. 37.
• Bradshaw, Y.; Michael W. (1991). Informing Generality and Explaining Uniqueness: The Place of Case Studies in Comparative Research, International Journal of Comparative Sociology, Vol. 32: 154-171.
• Caïs, J. (1997). Inter-country analysis (cross-national) , in Methodology of comparative analysis (pp. 83-104). Madrid: CIS
• Castro Monge, E. (2010). Case studies as a research methodology and their importance in business management and administration. National Journal of Administration, 1: 2-31 (54)
• Coller, Xr (2000). Criticisms, responses and strategies, in  Study of cases (pp. 53-59). Madrid: CIS (Colección Cuadernos Metólógicos, Nº 30).
• De la Maza, F.; De Cea, M. and Rubilar, G. (2018). Indigenous policies and state building from the local level: case studies from southern, central and northern Chile. Santiago, Chile: Pehuén
• Ellis, C.; Adams, T.; Bochner, A. (2011). Autoethnography: An overview. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 12(1), Art. 10. Forni, F.; Freytes, A.; Quaranta, G. (2008). Fréderic Le Play: A precursor of Qualitative Methodologies in Social Sciences, Myriad 60: 59 102
• Flyvbjerg, B. (2004). Five misunderstandings about case study research. Spanish Journal of Sociological Research, 106/4: 33-62.
• Gibbert, M.; Ruigrok, W. (2010). The 'What? And? How? of Case Study Rigor: Three Strategies Based on Published Work, Organizational Research Methods, Vol. 12(4): 710-737.
• Hammersly, M. (2007). The issue of quality in qualitative research, International Journal of Research & Method in Education, Vol. 30(3): 287-305. 
• Knoblauch, H. (2005). Focused Ethnography. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 6(3): 44.
• Lijphart, A. (1975). The Comparable-Cases Strategy in Comparative Research, Comparative Political Studies, Vol. 8: 169-181.
• Merriam, Sh. (1988). The case study approach to research problems. in Case Study Research in Education. A qualitative approach (pp. 5-21). San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers. 
• Neiman, G.; Quaranta, G. (2006). Case studies in sociological research. In Vasilachis, I. (coord.). Qualitative Research Strategies (pp. 213-237). Buenos Aires: Gedisa
• Piovani, J.; Krawczyk, Na (2017). Comparative Studies: some historical, epistemological and methodological notes. Education & Reality, 42 (3): 821-840.
• Ragin, C. Ch. (1997). Turning the Tables: How Case-Oriented Research Challenges Variable-Oriented Research, Comparative Social Research, Vol. 16: 27-42.
• Ragin, C. Ch.; Becker, H.. (eds.) (1992). What is a case? exploring the foundations of social inquiry... Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Richmond, M. (1922[1977]). Individual Social Case (translation by Natalio Kisnerman). Buenos Aires: Eudeba
• Rubilar, G. (2015). Practices of Memory and the Construction of Research Testimonies. A Methodological Reflection about Self-Interviewing, Testimonies, and Social Workers' Accounts of Their Research. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, [Sl], v. 16, no. 3, July 2015. ISSN 1438-5627.
• Sartori, G. (1991). Comparison and comparative method, in Giovanni Sartori and Leonardo Morlino (eds.). Comparison in the social sciences Madrid: Alianza.
• Stake, R. (1998). Case study research (chapters 1, 2, 4 and 5). Madrid: Morata.
• Stake, R. (2006). Multiple Case Study Analysis (ch. 1, 2 and 3). New York: The Guilford Press.
• Vasilachis, I. (2019). Towards process validity in qualitative research, in Qualitative research strategies (pp. 31-97). Volume II. Barcelona: Gedisa.
• Verd, JM; Barraco, O.; Moreno, S. (2007). The analysis of work processes using ethnographic methods: the case of administrative work in hospital outpatient clinics. Journal of Sociology, 83: 145-168.
• Verd, JM; Lozares, C. (2016). The selection of units in case studies. Typological sampling, in Introduction to Qualitative Research: Phases, Methods, and Techniques (pp. 115-124). Madrid: Síntesis.
• Verd, JM; Lozares, C. (2016). The case study as a qualitative strategy (pp. 50-57), in Introduction to Qualitative Research: Phases, Methods, and TechniquesMadrid: Síntesis.
• Wall, S. (2015). Focused Ethnography: A Methodological Adaptation for Social Research in Emerging Contexts. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social
• Ware, C. (1994[1935]). Greenwich Village 1920-1930. California: University of California Press.
• Yin, R. (2014). Case Study Research Designs, in Case Study Research. Design and Methods (pp. 49-63). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage. Fifth edition.(2007[1920]) Hull-House Maps and Papers. Illinois: University of Illinois.
• Yin, Robert K. (2014). General Approach to Designing Case Studies (pp. 27-37) and The Role of Theory or Theoretical Propositions in Research Designs (pp. 37- 45), in Case Study Research. Design and Methods. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage. Fifth edition.

The basic requirements for taking a seminar are:

• Availability of at least 4 hours per week to dedicate to the seminar course.
• Internet access.
• Reasonable handling of communication and computer tools.
• Language proficiency in the language in which the course will be taught. The official languages ​​are Spanish and Portuguese.

The seminars last 12 weeks, plus the completion of a final project. A total of 90 hours of dedication will be credited.

A course consists of twelve classes, each accompanied by required reading bibliography, supplementary bibliography, discussion forums and training activities proposed by the teaching team, partial deliveries and a final project.
The course is online and asynchronous. Some instructors may propose synchronous activities. In those cases, the time and date will be agreed upon beforehand between the teaching team and the students to ensure everyone's participation.
To pass the seminar, you must participate in at least 80% of the discussion forums and activities proposed by the teachers, have completed the scheduled partial deliveries, and pass the final work.

The possible payment methods are credit card, bank transfer and bank deposit.