Creswell never gets old

If you have ever read anything by Creswell, you will know that it never gets old. Reminding us how much of a valuable resource it is for all sorts of methodological challenges. We all need it in easy reach.

For example, in last week's Ask Me Anything, we were asked: In case study research, do you collect the data from one cohort before the next? To clarify, in a case study, do you generate data from one (organisational) group and then compare this to a 2nd or 3rd group?

The answer, as it usually is, it depends. Here is our answer drawing on the Research Central brains trust, particularly Frada.

Suppose you are doing a "classical" theory testing/extension case study with a positivistic flavour (re Yin's approach). In that case, the strategy is to develop a very robust interview and data collection protocol - so you can do your data collection in parallel or sequentially - it does not matter. However, in reality, you might not have access to all the participants from one organisation at the same time, and the other organisations (cases) may not be there to wait until your first case is all complete before you approach them in a serendipitous way - hence, you collect your data in bits and pieces from all the organisations as they become available - and analyse these in a way you decided based on your protocol. If, however, your study is based on a grounded theory/hermeneutics approach and the aim is theory development - you need to do your analysis of data as you collect it and keep comparing the results coming from multiple organisations in parallel - almost completing your cross-case analysis at the same time all your data is collected. You (they) should be mindful then to the extent the results are subject to transferability (with a limited generalisation as any interpretive study would be).

Love to hear your thoughts/feedback.