Case Study Research Case Study Research Manufacturing and Technology Management Research Methodology Workshop 2011 Dr Erik Stam University of Cambridge

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research What is a case?

Case Study Research What is a case? A person: …. A site: an organization – a country An artefact: technology, product Units of analysis in case studies: –Events, activities

Case Study Research A case study is an empirical enquiry that: Investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident; and multiple sources of evidence are used (Yin 2003:13-14).

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research Why case study research? Emphasis on (societal, historical) context Trying to reach a full explanation of a phenomenon within a unit of analysis Interpret events, uncovering processes (Mohr 1982) ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions Problem solving: closeness to practitioners ( abstract variables in much quantitative research) Working with Industry

Case Study Research Why case study research? Rule of thumb: more variables than cases ( survey research: more cases than variables) Relevant mechanisms, variables are not yet clear

Case Study Research Why case study research? Three important uses: 1.Motivation of research (falsify theories) 2.Inspiration for new ideas (theory building) 3.Illustration: concrete examples of theoretical constructs, show how the causal relationships work e.g. “dynamic capabilities”: Cisco (Mayer & Kenney 2004); IDEO (Hargadon & Sutton 1997)

Case Study Research Accusation: ‘Case study research is a “convenience” research strategy’ ‘… this study used the case study-method because of the complexity of the phenomenon studied. We did in-depth interviews with key actors in the firm.’ ‘Not much is known about X, hence we engage in theory building with case study research’ Quick results: -Too limited search in the literature for similar studies, relevant theories -Too limited efforts to select a proper case / sample

Case Study Research Three types of case study research Research question ObservationTheory Problem Theory Observation Observation (Theory)

Case Study Research Theory building (Eisenhardt 1989) unchartered waters, research as a voyage of discovery “grounded theory”: iterations between observations and emerging theory (Strauss & Corbin 1990)

Case Study Research Theory testing (Yin 2003) Social experiment –internal (causal connections) and –external validity (generalisability: stat-anal) –reliability (inter-subjectivity; protocols) –construct validity (operationalisation of concepts)

Case Study Research Problem solving (Van de Ven 2007) Practical problem central: engage with stakeholders Working with Industry & Policy

Case Study Research

A Diamond Model for Case Analysis (Van de Ven 2007) Problem/Question Case Reality Conceptual Model Solution Problem Formulation Model Building Model Evaluation Problem Solving 1. Ground the problem & question in reality. 2. Develop a conceptual model to address the question. 3. Evaluate how well the model applies to the case. 4. Implement a solution that solves the problem/question.

Case Study Research Research in practice Problem solving Theory building: existing / new Theory testing

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research Designing case studies How many cases? –1 (Dyer & Wilkins 1991): Talking pig (exceptional case) –Multiple (Eisenhardt 1989=4-10)

Case Study Research Designing case studies Sampling: –Statistical generalization (cases are representative for a wider population: sample -> population) –Analytical generalization (adequacy of theoretical inferences): replication logic of sampling (multiple case studies) Select contrasting cases (independent/dependent variables): counterfactual Select similar cases: saturation

Case Study Research Accusation: ‘Case study research is unscientific because of limited generalizability’

Case Study Research Designing case studies Timeframe: –Retrospective: +: select on the dependent variable +: compress time (history) –Longitudinal: +: no ‘survival’ bias +: measure the effect of designed interventions

Case Study Research Designing case studies Qualitative, quantitative data: –Triangulation in method –N: survey (>40) – semi-structured interviews (10-40)– unstructured interviews (1-10) – participant observation (1)

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research

Development of the spatial organization firm B

Case Study Research Explaining changes in the spatial organization of high-growth start-ups (Stam 2007) No (complete) theory: theory testing Initial quantitative survey to explore the field Theoretical sampling: –only 8 high-growth start-ups (defined as…) that moved their headquarters out of the region of origin –Matched pairs with non-moved hgsu, and with non-growth su...in the end: 33 cases –Semi-structured interviews, retrospective life course analysis of all (128) locational events …

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster

Case Study Research The decline of the Cambridgeshire high- tech cluster (Stam & Garnsey 2008) Emphasis on quantitative data (employment, establishments, patents) Longitudinal: Theory testing: –industry life cycle theory –ecological carrying capacity theory Need for additional qualitative data to uncover the causal mechanisms

Case Study Research Outline 1.What is a case? 2.Why case study research? 3.Designing case studies 4.Example 1: changes in the spatial organization of high growth start-ups 5.Example 2: the decline of the Cambridgeshire high-tech cluster 6.Summary

Case Study Research Summary All research includes cases, but not everything is case study research Focus on context: uniqueness + analytical generalization 3 types: theory building, theory testing, problem solving Design choices: nr of cases, timeframe, type of data

Case Study Research References Dyer, W.G. and Wilkins, A.L. (1991) Better Stories, Not Better Constructs, to Generate Better Theory: A Rejoinder to Eisenhardt, Academy of Management Review 16(3): Eisenhardt, K.M. (1989) Building Theories from Case Study Research, Academy of Management Review 14(4): Eisenhardt, K.M. (1991) Better Stories and Better Constructs: The Case for Rigor and Comparative Logic, Academy of Management Review 16(3): Mohr, L. (1982) Explaining organizational behaviour. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco. Stam, E. (2007) Why butterflies don’t leave. Locational behavior of entrepreneurial firms, Economic Geography, 83.1, Stam, E. and Garnsey, E. (2008) Limits to cluster growth, Work in progress… Strauss, A. and Corbin, J. (1990) Basics of qualitative research: grounded theory procedures and techniques. Sage: London. Van de Ven, A. (2007) Engaged Scholarship. A guide for organizational and social research. Oxford University Press: Oxford. Yin, R. (2003) Case Study Research. Design and Methods. 3rd edition. Sage: London.