Case Study Method

Roger Gomm, now retired, was lecturer in health and welfare at The Open University, UK. He has long experience of ethnographic research in both the United Kingdom and internationally, and of bespoke evaluation research. He has written several books, including Social Research Methodology (second edition, Palgrave Macmillan, 2008) and Key Concepts in Social Research Methods (Palgrave Macmillan, 2009). Martyn Hammersley is an emeritus professor of educational and social research at The Open University, UK. He has carried out research in the sociology of education and the sociology of the media. However, much of his work has been concerned with the methodological issues surrounding social enquiry. He has written several books including (with Paul Atkinson) Ethnography: Principles in Practice (fourth edition, Routledge, 2019), The Dilemma of Qualitative Method (Routledge, 1989), The Politics of Social Research (SAGE, 1995), Reading Ethnographic Research (second edition, Longman, 1997), Taking Sides in Social Research (Routledge, 2000), Educational Research, Policymaking and Practice, (London, Paul Chapman/SAGE, 2002), Questioning Qualitative Inquiry (SAGE, 2008), Methodology Who Needs It? (SAGE, 2011), The Myth of Research-Based Policy and Practice (SAGE, 2013), The Limits of Social Science (SAGE, 2014), and The Concept of Culture (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019). Website: http://martynhammersley.wordpress.com/

Introduction PART ONE: INTRINSIC CASE STUDY AND GENERALIZABILITY The Case Study Method in Social Inquiry - Robert E Stake The Only Generalization Is - Yvonna S Lincoln and Egon G Guba There Is No Generalization Generalizability and the Single Case Study - Robert Donmoyer Increasing the Generalizability of Case Study Research - Janet Ward Schofield Case Study and Generalization - Roger Gomm, Martyn Hammersley and Peter Foster PART TWO: CASE STUDY AND THEORY Case Study and Theory in Political Science - Harry Eckstein Case Study and Situational Analysis - J Clyde Mitchell The Logical Structure of Analytic Induction - W S Robinson The Quest for Universals in Sociological Research - Ralph H Turner Small N's and Big Conclusions - Stanley Lieberson An Examination of the Reasoning in Comparative Studies Based on a Small Number of Cases Cases, Causes, Conjunctures, Stories, Imagery - Howard S Becker Case Study and Theory - Martyn Hammersley, Roger Gomm and Peter Foster

`This is a worthwhile book which will be useful to readers. It collects together key sources on a topic which is a "hardy perennial", guaranteeing its relevance for academics, researchers, and students on higher level methods programmes. The editorial contributions are by well-known authorities in the field, are carefully-constructed, and take a clear position. I would certainly want this book on my shelf' - Nigel Fielding, University of Surrey ". . .the book enlightens researchers concerning the contributions of case studies to research and could serve as an informative reader for doctoral students considering case study methods for their dissertations." -- Jody Fitzpatrick