Case Study Methodology
Case Study Methodology
This course illustrates and describes the case study methodology to conduct qualitative empirical research aimed at crafting a Thesis, Dissertation, Scientific Article or Research Project.
Course description
This course aims at providing students and participants with the theoretical and practical information and guidelines to:
- Become knowledgeable about the definitions and main rules of qualitative research and case study;
- Define the case study methodology and understand its domain of application and its different types (descriptive, explanatory, exploratory);
- Identify and apply the key steps to conduct a case study, by means of a practical example of its application in a scientific article (Ghezzi, A., Cavallo, A. (2018). Agile Business Model Innovation in Digital Entrepreneurship: Lean Startup Approaches, Journal of Business Research DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.06.013).
This course includes content to guide students and participants aiming at applying the case study methodology in all of its key steps:
- Setting the problem;
- Defining objectives;
- Framing the analysis in extant theories;
- Defining the methodology, which is further divided into the sub-steps of
- Deciding the unit(s) of analysis
- Selecting cases
- Collecting data
- Analyzing data
- Interpreting the findings
- Evaluating the case study and assessing the role of theory.
Total workload of the course: 5 hours
This MOOC is provided by Politecnico di Milano.
Co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union
Project number 574050-EPP-1-2016-1-DE-EPPKA2-CBHE-SP
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Intended Learning Outcomes
By actively participating in this MOOC, you will be able to:
- Discriminate between qualitative and quantitative research methods;
- Define qualitative research and the Case Study methodology;
- Identify the main Case Study types;
- Plan a Case Study research based on a clear set of steps;
- Formulate a clear research problem, objective, and theoretical framing for a Case Study
- Make decisions about Case Study’s units of analysis, case selection, data collection and analysis, and interpretation of research findings;
- Evaluate the quality of your Case Study through a set of criteria;
- Leverage Case Studies as a methodology for theory-building research.
In broad terms, the participant will develop the learning outcomes in the areas of: ESCO: conduct scholarly research, ESCO: scientific research methodology,
Prerequisites
No formal knowledge is required.
Activities
Over and above consulting the content, in the form of videos and other web-based resources, you will have the opportunity to discuss course topics and to share ideas with your peers in the Forum of this MOOC. The forum of this MOOC is freely accessible, and participation is not guided; you can use it to compare yourself with other participants, or to discuss course contents with them.
A Bibliography section is available, where you can find a list of resources that can help you in deepening the topics of the course.
Section outline
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Assessment
Your final grade for the course will be based on the results of your answers to the assessed quizzes. You have an unlimited number of attempts at each quiz, but you must wait 15 minutes before you can try again. You will have successfully completed the course if you score 60% (or higher) in each one of the assessed quizzes. The maximum score possible for each quiz is given at the beginning of the quiz. You can view your score in the quiz on your last attempt or on the 'Grades' page.
Certificate
You can achieve a certificate in the form of an Open Badge for this course, if you reach at least 60% of the total score in each one of the assessed quizzes and fill in the final survey.
Once you have completed the required tasks, you will be able to access ‘Get the Open Badge’ and start issuing the badge. Instructions on how to access the badge will be sent to your e-mail address.
The Badge does not confer any academic credit, grade or degree.
Information about fees and access to materials
You can access the course absolutely free of charge and completely online.
Course faculty
Antonio Ghezzi
Teacher
Antonio Ghezzi, Ph.D., is currently Professor of Strategy & Marketing at the Department of Management, Economics and Industrial Engineering, Politecnico di Milano – Italy; Professor of Strategy & Startups and member of the core faculty at MIP – Graduate School of Business; and Research Head of the Hi-tech Startups Observatory - Digital Innovation Observatories. His main research field are Corporate and Business Strategy, Business Model Design & Innovation, Digital Strategy, Strategic Entrepreneurship and Incumbent-Startups strategic collaboration. He is author of more than 100 academic publications appearing in scientific journals (like the International Journal of Management Reviews, Journal of Business Research, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, R&D Management and Management Decision), conference proceedings, books and book chapters. You can reach him on ResearchGate, LinkedIn (Antonio Ghezzi – Politecnico di Milano) and Twitter (AntonioGhezzi83).
Acknowledgements
Antonio Ghezzi wishes to thank Prof. Michela Arnaboldi – School of Management of Politecnico di Milano – for sharing her insight on Case Study research as well as providing the original material that was integrated to develop this course content; and Eng. Silvia Sanasi for carefully supporting the content development process.
Contact details
If you have any enquiries about the course or if you need technical assistance please contact pok@polimi.it. For further information, see FAQ page.