Lecture 10 Case study: definition, examples and types

The case-study method or the method of specific situations (from the English case
- case, situation) is a method of active problem-situational analysis based on
learning by solving specific problem situations (solving cases).- The case-study
method refers to non-game simulation active learning methods and is designed to
gain experience in the following areas:
identification, selection and problem solving;
working with information – understanding the meaning of the details described in
the situation; analyzing and synthesizing information and arguments; working with
assumptions and conclusions; evaluating alternatives; making decisions;
listening to and understanding other people, including group work skills.
The immediate goal of the case-study method is to analyze the situation – case
arising in a particular state of affairs through the joint efforts of students and
develop a practical solution; the end of the process is to evaluate the proposed
algorithms and choose the best one in the context of the problem.
The case itself is a written description of certain conditions from the life of an
organization, group of people or individuals, orienting students to formulate a
problem and search for solutions to it. A case is always a simulation of a life
situation, and working with a case allows you to consider a problem at a desk and
offer your own unique solution.
The case contains comprehensive information about: what is happening, who is
involved in it, when the result should be obtained, why all this is needed (i.e. the
purpose of the task), what resources (time, money, people, powers, etc.) can be
used? There is only no answer to the question: how to achieve the goal and get the
desired result? This is what the participant is invited to solve, who, like a
mathematical problem, must solve the case.

Case Study Definition

“What exactly is a case study?”
A case study critically assesses an event, a place, personality, or situation to draw a
conclusion. It uses all background information to identify the key problems and
recommend further action.
However, you must polish your analytical skills to master case study analysis.
A good case study demonstrates the excellent academic skills of students. But,
planning is an important step, especially if you do not want to get into any
complicated situation.
To help you write the case study easily, we have explained everything in detail in
this blog. Here, you can learn all about the types of case studies and how to write
one properly and successfully.
Ideas of the case-study method
1. The method is intended for obtaining knowledge in disciplines in which the truth
is pluralistic, i.e. there is no unambiguous answer to the question posed, but there
are several answers that can compete in the degree of truth; the task of teaching at
the same time immediately deviates from the classical scheme and is focused on
obtaining not only, but many truths and orientation in their problem field.
2. The emphasis of teaching is shifted not to mastering ready-made knowledge, but
to its development, to the co-creation of the student and the teacher; hence the
fundamental difference between the case-study method and traditional methods -
democracy in the process of obtaining knowledge, when the student is essentially
equal with other students and the teacher in the process of discussing the problem.
3. The result of applying the method is not only knowledge, but also skills of
professional activity.
4. The technology of the method is as follows: according to certain rules, a model
of a specific situation that occurred in real life is developed, and the complex of
knowledge and practical skills that students need to receive is reflected; at the
same time, the teacher acts as a moderator, generating questions, fixing answers,
supporting discussion, i.e. as a dispatcher of the co-creation process.
5. The undoubted advantage of the situational analysis method is not only the
acquisition of knowledge and the formation of practical skills, but also the
development of a system of values of students, professional positions, life
attitudes, a kind of professional attitude and world transformation.
6. The case-study method overcomes the classic defect of traditional teaching
associated with "dryness", unemotionality of the presentation of the material –
emotions, creative competition and even struggle in this method so much that a
well-organized discussion of the case resembles a theatrical performance.
Case-studies are educational specific situations specially developed on the basis of
factual material for the purpose of subsequent analysis in training sessions. During
the analysis of situations, students learn to act in a "team", to analyze and make
managerial decisions.
The case-study method is a tool that allows you to apply theoretical knowledge to
solving practical problems, the use of this method contributes to the development
of independent thinking among students, the ability to listen and take into account
an alternative point of view, to express your own argumentatively. With this
method, students have the opportunity to demonstrate and improve analytical and
evaluation skills, learn how to work in a team, find the most rational solution to the
problem. Being an interactive teaching method, the case-study method provides the
development of theoretical positions and mastering the practical use of the
material; affects the professionalization of students; forms interest and positive
motivation in relation to learning.

Case requirements
The case - example taken from real life is not just a true description of events, but a
single information complex that allows you to understand the situation. A good
case must meet the following conditions:
 -meet a clearly defined goal of creation;
 -have the appropriate difficulty level;
illustrate several aspects of economic life;
 -don't become obsolete too quickly;
 —be relevant for today;
 -illustrate typical situations;
 -develop analytical thinking;
 -provoke a discussion;
have multiple solutions.

Technological features of the case-study method

Case-study method
 -represents a specific type of research analytical technology, i.e. it includes
operations of the research process, analytical procedures.
 -acts as a technology of collective learning, the most important components of
which are working in a group (or subgroups) and mutual exchange of information.
 -in training, it can be considered as a synergetic technology, the essence of
which is to prepare procedures for immersing a group in a situation, forming the
effects of multiplication of knowledge, insight insight, exchange of discoveries,
etc.
integrates technologies of developing learning, including procedures for individual,
group and collective development, formation of diverse personal qualities of
trainees.
 -acts as a specific kind of project technology. In the usual teaching project
technology, there is a process of solving the existing problem through the joint
activity of students, whereas in the case-study method, the problem and ways of
solving it are being formed on the basis of a case, which acts simultaneously as a
technical task and a source of information for understanding options for effective
actions.
-concentrates significant achievements of the technology of "creating success". It
provides for activities to activate students, stimulate their success, emphasize the
achievements of students. It is the achievement of success that is one of the main
movements
 their strength of the method, the formation of stable positive motivation, the
build-up of cognitive activity.

Classification of cases
The basis is complexity:
illustrative educational situations - cases, the purpose of which is to teach the
algorithm of making the right decision in a certain situation by a certain practical
example; educational situations - cases with the formation of a problem, in which
the situation is described in a specific period of time, problems are identified and
clearly formulated; the purpose of such a case is to diagnose the situation and make
an independent decision on the specified problem;
educational situations are cases without forming a problem, which describe a more
complex situation than in the previous version, where the problem is not clearly
identified, but is presented in statistical data, assessments of public opinion,
authorities, etc.; the purpose of such a case is to independently identify the
problem, indicate alternative ways to solve it with an analysis of available
resources;
applied exercises that describe a specific situation, it is proposed to find ways out
of it; the purpose of such a case is to find ways to solve the problem.
Foundation - goals and objectives of the learning process:
 training analysis and evaluation;
 problem solving and decision making tutorials;
illustrating the problem, solution, or concept as a whole.
The basis is information saturation
 a structured (highly structured) "case", in which a minimum amount of
additional information is given; when working with it, the student must apply a
certain model or formula; there is an optimal solution for problems of this type;
 —"small sketches" (short vignettes), containing, as a rule, from one to ten pages
of text and one or two pages of appendices; they introduce only key concepts and
when parsing them, the student must also rely on his own knowledge;
 -large unstructured "cases" (long unstructured cases) with a volume of up to 50
pages are the most difficult of all types of educational tasks of this kind; they give
very detailed information, including completely unnecessary; the most necessary
information for analysis, on the contrary, may be missing; the student must
recognize such "tricks" and cope with them;
 -groundbreaking "cases" (ground breaking cases), in the analysis of which
students are required not only to apply already acquired theoretical knowledge and
practical skills, but also to offer something new, while students and teachers act as
researchers.
The basis is the degree of exposure to sources:
practical cases that reflect absolutely real life situations (the main task of the
practical case is to reflect the life situation in detail and in detail. In fact, such a
case creates a practical, what is called a "working" model of the situation. At the
same time, the educational purpose of such a case can be reduced to training
students, consolidating knowledge, skills and behavioral skills (decision-making)
in this situation. Such cases should be as visual and detailed as possible. Their
main meaning boils down to the knowledge of life and the acquisition of the ability
to optimal activity);
training cases, the main task of which is training (the case with the dominance of
the training function reflects life not one to one: firstly, it reflects typical situations
that are most frequent in life, and which a specialist will have to face in the course
of his professional activity; secondly, in the training case, educational and
educational tasks are in the first place, which predetermines a significant element
of conditionality when reflecting life in it; the situation, problem and plot here are
not real, practical, but such as they may be in life);
 -research cases focused on the implementation of research activities (the case
serves as a model for obtaining new knowledge about the situation and behavior in
it. Such a case is being built according to the principles of creating a research
model, therefore it is better to use it not as a method of teaching basic educational,
but as a method of professional development or professional retraining of
specialists.).
Sources of case formation
1. Artistic and journalistic literature, which can suggest ideas, and in some cases
determine the plot outline of cases in the humanities. The use of fiction and
journalism gives the case a culturological function, stimulates the moral
development of the student's personality.
2. The use of "local" material as a source of case formation. The most intense and
interesting discussion of cases about the activities of different companies occurs
when the company and its products have a certain personal significance for the
student. The case of Samsung goes best when there are students in the group who
have products developed by this company at home. The case of the development of
ski tourism in Demino is discussed with the greatest interest by fans of skiing…
3. The scientific nature and rigor of the case are given by statistical materials,
information about the state of the market, socio-economic characteristics of the
enterprise, etc.; at the same time, these materials can play the role of a direct tool
for diagnosing the situation, and can act as a material for calculating indicators that
are most essential for understanding the situation. Statistical materials are placed
either in the text of the case itself or in the appendix.
4. Sound materials for the case can be obtained by analyzing scientific articles,
monographs and scientific reports on a particular problem. The use of scientific
literature in the development of the case gives it greater rigor and correctness.
Scientific publications can perform two functions in the case-study method: the
first is that scientific publications and their fragments can act as components of
cases by including them in the fabric, and the second is that they can be included in
the list of literature necessary for understanding the case.
5. An inexhaustible source of material for case studies is the Internet with its
resources. This source is characterized by significant scale, flexibility and
efficiency.

The main stages of creating cases

1. Formation of the didactic goals of the case. This stage includes determining the
place of the case in the structure of the discipline, determining the section of the
discipline to which this situation is devoted; formulating goals and objectives;
identifying the "zone of responsibility" for students' knowledge, skills and abilities.
2. Definition of the problem situation.
3. Building a program map of the case, consisting of the main theses that need to
be implemented in the text.
4. Search for an institutional system (firm, organization, department, etc.) that is
directly related to the theses of the program map.
5. Collecting information in the institutional system regarding the theses of the
case program map.
6. Building or choosing a model of the situation that reflects the activities of the
institute; checking its compliance with reality.
7. The choice of the genre of the case.
8. Writing the case text.
9. Diagnostics of the correctness and effectiveness of the case; conducting a
methodical educational experiment, built according to one scheme or another, to
find out the effectiveness of this case.
10. Preparation of the final version of the case.
11. The introduction of the case into the practice of teaching, its application during
training sessions, as well as its publication for the purpose of dissemination in the
teaching community; in the event that the information contains data on a specific
company, it is necessary to obtain permission for publication.
12. Preparation of methodological recommendations on the use of the case:
development of tasks for students and possible questions for discussion and
presentation of the case, description of the expected actions of students and
teachers at the time of discussion of the case.

Case Study Examples

Examples are a great way to learn how to do a case study. That’s why we have also
compiled a bunch of interesting case study examples that you can go through
before starting writing.

Case Study Introduction Example

The introduction is the first thing that your readers are going to interact with. So, it
is important to formulate a captivating introduction to draw the reader’s attention.
Make sure to include a thesis statement and summarize the outcome into 1-2
sentences.
You can also refer to the following example of a case study and learn how to write
an interesting introduction.
UX Case Study Example
UX case studies are a great example of design work that designers include in their
portfolios. To give you more insights, here is a UX case study design example that
you can refer to.
Amazon Case Study Example
Are you looking for an Amazon case study example? Look at this detailed example
and learn how to write a case study analysis.
Business Case Study Example
In particular, a business case study focuses on telling a story of how your product
or service helped people in achieving their short or long-term goals. You can also
read this example and understand the essential elements of writing a great case
study.
APA Format Case Study Example
Wondering how to write a case study in APA format? Keep in mind that there are
certain APA format guidelines that you need to follow throughout.
Refer to this APA format case study example for more help.

Psychology Case Study Example

A case study in psychology refers to the use of a descriptive research approach for
an in-depth analysis of a subject such as a person, group, or organization.
Below we have provided a great example for you to learn how to write a case study
in psychology.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of a case study?
The objective of a case study is to do intensive research on a specific matter, such
as individuals or communities. It's often used for academic purposes where you
want the reader to know all factors involved in your subject while also
understanding the processes at play.
What are the sources of a case study?
Some common sources of a case study include:

 Interviews
 Documents
 Archival records
 Direct observations and encounters
 Participant observation
 Facts and statistics
 Physical artifacts

What is the sample size of a case study?

A normally acceptable size of a case study is 30-50. However, the final number
depends on the scope of your study and the on-ground demographic realities.