In qualitative comparative analysis, as with all methods, there is a question about how many cases are needed to make an analysis robust. In deciding on the number of cases, a key consideration is the number of conditions to be analyzed. I suggest that adding cases is preferable to dropping conditions if there are too many conditions relative to…

I start with a detailed but "partial" analysis of a case regarding grade inflation. The case is inspired by the discussion in Crumbley et al. (2010) and its elaboration in Roberts (2016). I supplement the case description by introducing certain facts that are not in the original discussion. The subsequent analysis is based on this…

This case study reflects upon practices of community-engaged scholarship and teaching as autoethnography research rooted in Indigenous educational sovereignty and decolonization. In this case study, readers are invited to contemplate how their positionalities, and practices in their respective fields, could be framed into active research. Readers…

Three quantitative methods are compared for their ability to understand different COVID-19 fatality ratios in 33 OECD countries. Linear regression provides a limited overview without sensitivity to the diversity of cases. Cluster Analysis and Dynamic Patterns Synthesis (DPS) gives scrutiny to the granularity of case similarities and differences,…

Functional analysis methods allow clinicians to determine the variable(s) that maintain destructive behavior. Previous reviews of functional analysis outcomes have included large samples of published and unpublished data sets (i.e., clinical samples). The purpose of this review was to conduct a large retrospective consecutive controlled case…

This dissertation is about a particular style of research. The philosophy of this style is that in order to scientifically understand deep learning, it is fruitful to investigate what happens when neural networks are trained on simple, mathematically well-defined tasks. Even though the training data is simple, the training algorithm can end up…

We conducted a scoping review on the consecutive controlled case series (CCCS) methodology (Hagopian, 2020). The CCCS is an approach to studying functional relations across a series of consecutive cases that share common features. We identified and reviewed 76 studies that used CCCS methodology. Most of these (a) were retrospective CCCS studies…

The use of inter-rater reliability (IRR) methods may provide an opportunity to improve the transparency and consistency of qualitative case study data analysis in terms of the rigor of how codes and constructs have been developed from the raw data. Few articles on qualitative research methods in the literature conduct IRR assessments or neglect to…

Purpose: Critical realism is an increasingly popular "lens" through which complex events, entities and phenomena can be studied. Yet detailed operationalisations of critical realism are at present relatively scarce. This study's objective here is built on existing debates by developing an open systems model of reality, a basis for…

While methodologies are often presented as standardised procedures which, under specified conditions, should lead to the same conclusions, this case study presents the complex and deeply personal process of research (Addey and Piattoeva 2022). We analyse our application of network ethnography -- an approach presented by Ball (2016) -- to the study…

Within social science research the complex nature of relationship-making and 'friendship as method' has gained enthusiasm. However, there is still a significant lack of research on 'friendship as method' with children and young people in participatory studies. Drawing on empirical case studies, we ask: how does 'friendship as method' work in…

This case study presents a multistage and multimodal methodology for conducting online research studies using video conferencing tools. We designed our methodology to capture how Brazilian schoolchildren (ages 9-11) transact, alone or with others, homework information-searching routines. Our case study presents the steps involved in designing an…

Purpose: This paper aims to consider ways to visually model data generated by qualitative case studies, pointing out a need for visualizations that depict both synchronic relations across representations and how those relations change diachronically. To develop an appropriate modeling approach, the paper critically examines Max Boisot's I-Space…

Researchers increasingly take advantage of the comparative case design to build theory, but the degree of case dependence is occasionally discussed and theorized. We suggest that the comparative case study design might be subject to an often underappreciated threat--dependence across cases--under certain conditions. Using research on innovation…

The present work provides a review of two widely used approaches in educational research: action research and case study. Action research aims to improve educational practice by means of reflective cycles and shows variants according to a predominant paradigm, from technical to critical visions. A case study, described as an umbrella term, focuses…