Building Theory from Case
Study Research
Getting Started
An initial definition of the research question,
in at least broad terms, is important in building
theory from case studies. Mintzberg (1979, p.
585) noted: "No matter how small our sample or
what our interest, we have always tried to go
into organizations with a well-defined focus-to
collect specific kinds of data systematically." The
rationale for defining the research question is
the same as it is in hypothesis-testing research.
Without a research focus, it is easy to become
overwhelmed by the volume of data. For example,
Pettigrew and colleagues (1988) defined
their research question in terms of strategic
change and competitiveness within large British
corporations, and Leonard-Barton (1988) focused
on technical innovation of feasible technologies.
Such definition of a research question
within a broad topic permitted these investigators
to specify the kind of organization to be approached,
and, once there, the kind of data to be
gathered.
A priori specification of constructs can also
help to shape the initial design of theorybuilding
research. Although this type of specification
is not common in theory-building studies
to date, it is valuable because it permits researchers
to measure constructs more accurately.
If these constructs prove important as the
study progresses, then researchers have a
firmer empirical grounding for the emergent
theory. For example, in a study of strategic decision
making in top management teams, Bourgeois
and Eisenhardt (1988) identified several
potentially important constructs (e.g., conflict,
power) from the literature on decision making.
These constructs were explicitly measured in the
interview protocol and questionnaires. When
several of these constructs did emerge as relatedto the decision process, there were strong, triangulated
measures on which to ground the emergent
theory.