Approaching case study

There will always be a plan for a case study but there will also be some flexibility in the design. As with other approaches, the design will always take account of the purpose, theoretical perspectives, research question(s), methods and sampling, although decisions about some of these may change as the case study develops.

Methods in case study research

In developing case studies, methods must be selected to fit the purpose. So for example, if you want to explore 'Why has there been a decline in the teaching of (a particular subject) at the University of X', you might plan to analyse documents, interview students and staff and observe teaching in that subject area. You can then build up a 'rich picture' of what is going on. In the course of the study, people may tell you something that makes you modify your original plan so perhaps, in addition to the methods originally selected, you may send a questionnaire out to past students.