Single-subject research is a type of quantitative research that involves studying in detail the behaviour of each of a small number of participants. The majority of this textbook is devoted to understanding group research, which is the most common approach in psychology.

A case study allows a more detailed look at the life of a single subject than any other study. Qualitative research generally uses numbers to represent research data.

In design of experiments, single-subject design or single-case research design is a research design most often used in applied fields of psychology, education, and human behavior in which the subject serves as his/her own control, rather than using another individual/group.

When rigorously designed, single-case studies can be particularly useful experimental designs in a variety of situations, even when researcher resources are limited, studied conditions have low incidences, or when examining effects of novel or expensive interventions.

Strengths of Case Studies

• Provides detailed (rich qualitative) information.
• Provides insight for further research.
• Permitting investigation of otherwise impractical (or unethical) situations.

Multiple-case design is a research methodology in which several instrumental, bounded cases are examined using multiple data collection methods. This research methodology is more powerful than single-case designs as it provides more extensive descriptions and explanations of the phenomenon or issue.

In single case studies, all cases do not have literature reviews but many of them have instead a title like “Case study” or “Case description”. In multiple cases all have a conclusion and the most of them have some sort of literature review but not all of them.

A case study is a research methodology that has commonly used in social sciences. Case studies are based on an in-depth investigation of a single individual, group or event to explore the causes of underlying principles. A case study is a descriptive and exploratory analysis of a person, group or event.

A case study can include more than one person. An experimental psychology course asks all student to administer a questionnaire about classroom technology use.

Some say between 30-50 sample size is fine, while others say between 5-25, and another group say between 5-12. There is even a renowned authority who claimed that one participant is enough depending on what a researcher is researching.

Limitation: Case studies cannot be replicated and a single case study cannot be generalized to a wider population. Limitation: There is a potential risk for researcher bias in case studies, in that the researcher’s own beliefs can influence the way the data are collected and analysed.

Case study research may feature single cases or multiple cases (e.g., often two to four).

Random selection refers to the method used to select your participants for the study. For example, you may use random selection to obtain 60 participants by randomly selecting names from a list of the population. Random assignment is used to form groups of participants who are similar.

While some experts in qualitative research avoid the topic of “how many” interviews “are enough,” there is indeed variability in what is suggested as a minimum. An extremely large number of articles, book chapters, and books recommend guidance and suggest anywhere from 5 to 50 participants as adequate.

Or you can go by an overall rule of thumb to estimate how many case studies you may need. For example, for a medium-sized software firm, 4 to 6 case studies a year is a good target. A larger firm with a regular e-newsletter may need one fresh case study every month.

Case studies tend to focus on qualitative data using methods such as interviews, observations, and analysis of primary and secondary sources (e.g. newspaper articles, photographs, official records). Sometimes a case study will also collect quantitative data.

Characteristics of Case Study

• The number of unit to be studied is small.
• It studies a social unit deeply and thoroughly.
• It is qualitative as well as quantitative.
• It covers sufficient wide cycle of time.
• It has continuity in nature.

There are several steps to writing an answer to a case study assignment:

1. STEP 1: READ THE CASE STUDY AND QUESTIONS CAREFULLY. •
2. STEP 2: IDENTIFY THE ISSUES IN THE CASE STUDY.
3. STEP 3: LINK THEORY TO PRACTICE.
4. STEP 4: PLAN YOUR ANSWER.
5. STEP 5: START WRITING YOUR CASE STUDY ANSWER.
6. STEP 6: EDIT AND PROOFREAD.
7. STEP 7: SUBMIT.

Use the facts provided by the case to identify the key issue or issues facing the company you are studying. Many cases present multiple issues or problems. Identify the most important and separate them from more trivial issues. State the major problem or challenge facing the company.

Introduction – Write an introduction where you identify the key problem and make a summary of the thesis statement in 1 or 2 sentences. Background Information – Include some relevant facts and issues and conduct research on the problem. Alternatives – Describe several alternatives and explain why some were rejected.

Post the summary of your case study and the issues that it raised. Read the posts about the same and other articles and contribute to the discussion board by identifying any common themes that emerge in the postings.

A good case study isn’t simply engaging content, it needs to be well-written, engaging content that is laid out in a clear, concise manner. Most readers are just going to skim your case study to find important parts that relate to them.

There are usually eight sections in a case study:

1. Synopsis/Executive Summary. Outline the purpose of the case study.
2. Findings. Identify the problems found in the case by:
3. Discussion. Summarise the major problem/s.
4. Conclusion.
5. Recommendations.
6. Implementation.
7. References.
8. Appendices (if any)

Preparing the Case

1. Read and Examine the Case Thoroughly. Take notes, highlight relevant facts, underline key problems.
2. Focus Your Analysis. Identify two to five key problems.
3. Uncover Possible Solutions/Changes Needed. Review course readings, discussions, outside research, your experience.
4. Select the Best Solution.

While the guidelines and template contain much detail, your finished case study should be only 500 to 1,500 words in length. Therefore, you will need to write efficiently and avoid unnecessarily flowery language.

a case study can be defined as an intensive study about a person, a group of people or a unit, which is aimed to generalize over several units’.1 A case study has also been described as an intensive, systematic investigation of a single individual, group, community or some other unit in which the researcher examines in …

The definition of a case is a holder for something or an instance of something happening. An example of a case is a piece of luggage. An example of a case is a medical condition such as a case of chickenpox. An example of a case are the facts in a legal action.

Types of Case Studies

• Illustrative Case Studies. These are primarily descriptive studies.
• Exploratory (or pilot) Case Studies. These are condensed case studies performed before implementing a large scale investigation.
• Cumulative Case Studies.
• Critical Instance Case Studies.

The general purpose of a case study is to: → describe an individual situation (case), e.g. a person, business, organisation, or institution, in detail; → identify the key issues of the case (your assignment question should tell you what to focus on); → analyse the case using relevant theoretical concepts from your unit …

One of the strengths and weaknesses of case studies is that it may expose problems such as this and it may also cause problems like this. A case study presentation is not like a stereotype, but it is as damaging as using a stereotype when a case study presentation is used as evidence.