Difference between revisions of "Case Study Guidelines"
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===General=== | ===General=== | ||
* (Forsys general) Produce guidelines for the development and use of forest decision support systems | * (Forsys general) Produce guidelines for the development and use of forest decision support systems | ||
| + | * types general types of case studies: | ||
| + | # exploratory: explores a relatively unknown issue, generally unstructured, develop hypotheses for further research | ||
| + | # descriptive: describes one or more cases using a standard format, | ||
| + | # explanatory | ||
===Specific=== | ===Specific=== | ||
| + | ====Exploratory==== | ||
| + | ====Descriptive==== | ||
| + | ====Explanatory==== | ||
; What factors make a forest DSS successful? | ; What factors make a forest DSS successful? | ||
: For a DSS to be successful, a simple model could consider three stages: 1) development of the DSS itself > 2) adoption of the DSS by users > 3) use of the DSS | : For a DSS to be successful, a simple model could consider three stages: 1) development of the DSS itself > 2) adoption of the DSS by users > 3) use of the DSS | ||
| Line 24: | Line 31: | ||
===General=== | ===General=== | ||
* One or more existing theories vs. grounded theory | * One or more existing theories vs. grounded theory | ||
| − | |||
===Specific=== | ===Specific=== | ||
* Does the adoption and use of DSS vary by problem type? | * Does the adoption and use of DSS vary by problem type? | ||
Revision as of 06:45, 2 November 2011
DRAFT ideas for discussion at Leuven meeting.
Contents
- 1 What is a case study?
- 2 Purpose(s) of FORSYS Case Studies
- 3 Methods - Theory development
- 4 Methods - Case definition options
- 5 Methods - Selecting studies
- 6 Methods – Data sources & collection methods
- 7 Methods - describing cases
- 8 Methods - maintaining objectivity
- 9 Reporting results
- 10 Other issues
What is a case study?
Excerpted from Wikipedia Case Study:
Thomas[4] offers the following definition of case study: "Case studies are analyses of persons, events, decisions, periods, projects, policies, institutions, or other systems that are studied holistically by one or more methods. The case that is the subject of the inquiry will be an instance of a class of phenomena that provides an analytical frame — an object — within which the study is conducted and which the case illuminates and explicates."
Rather than using samples and following a rigid protocol (strict set of rules) to examine limited number of variables, case study methods involve an in-depth, longitudinal (over a long period of time) examination of a single instance or event: a case. They provide a systematic way of looking at events, collecting data, analyzing information, and reporting the results. As a result the researcher may gain a sharpened understanding of why the instance happened as it did, and what might become important to look at more extensively in future research. Case studies lend themselves to both generating and testing hypotheses.[5]
Purpose(s) of FORSYS Case Studies
General
- (Forsys general) Produce guidelines for the development and use of forest decision support systems
- types general types of case studies:
- exploratory: explores a relatively unknown issue, generally unstructured, develop hypotheses for further research
- descriptive: describes one or more cases using a standard format,
- explanatory
Specific
Exploratory
Descriptive
Explanatory
- What factors make a forest DSS successful?
- For a DSS to be successful, a simple model could consider three stages: 1) development of the DSS itself > 2) adoption of the DSS by users > 3) use of the DSS
- DSS development factors
- DSS adoption (by users) factors
- A commonly used perspective on the adoption of technologies, such as DSS, relies on theories of innovation diffusion. Rogers (2003) text on innovation diffusion theory states that adoption rates depend on five attributes of innovations: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, triability and observability.
- DSS use factors
- Once the decision is made to use a DSS, both technical and social factors are likely to influence its success. DeLone and McLean (1992, 2003) have developed a widely cited framework for technical factors, which begins with: system quality, information quality, and service quality. Gordon (2006) reviewed social success factors, and reduced them to DSS effects on: participation, communication, translation, and mediation.
Methods - Theory development
General
- One or more existing theories vs. grounded theory
Specific
- Does the adoption and use of DSS vary by problem type?
Methods - Case definition options
- The application of a single DSS to a single problem (probably the most common type of case definition)
- A particular DSS over its lifetime (multiple problems)
- The application of DSS (possibly multiple) in a problem domain (eg fire)
Methods - Selecting studies
General
- Replication strategy: same DSS & same context OR same DSS & different contexts OR different DSS & same context, etc
- How many cases do we undertake?
- Depends on the detail needed (cases could be short or long, depending on purposes)
Specific
- Representative sample of problem types
- asking other FORSYS members preferences; looking at country reports; looking at wiki contents; …lottery
Methods – Data sources & collection methods
- six general sources for case studies: documents, archival records, interviews, direct observation, participant observation, physical artifacts
Methods - describing cases
- The participatory planning case studies used a descriptive framework based on Simon's (1960) stages of decision making
- organization, intelligence, design, choice, monitoring
Methods - maintaining objectivity
- How to guarantee the “fairness” in evaluating case studies?
- Each of us works only on CS in which is not directly involved; widening the group; …; the problem does not exist
Reporting results
General
- Possible audiences: academic, DSS developers, forest managers, DSS funders
Specific
- Add to wiki
- Publish most developed case studies as journal articles (seek special issue?)
