A case study is a description of a specific situation, problem or decision, real or realistically invented, that the student has to analyse.
A student might read about a company that lost customers, a hospital coping with a shortage of staff, or a brand that grew from local to international. They then analyse the situation, look for the causes of the problem or the success, assess the decisions taken, or propose a solution of their own.
A case study does not have to describe a real company. A lecturer can invent one, as long as it reflects a situation students may meet in practice. Its important feature is that the student has to do something with the situation described: analyse it, draw conclusions, or make a decision.
Columbia University describes the case study as “an active form of instruction that focuses on a case and involves students learning by doing” (Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning, 2019, n.p.).
Types of case study
There are several types of case study. Harvard Kennedy School (n.d.) divides them into two basic groups:
- Retrospective or narrative cases, which present the whole history of a problem, from the moment it appeared through to its resolution and results. Students analyse what happened and why, assess the actions taken and their consequences, and consider why those actions produced the results they did.
- Decision-forcing cases, which present a problem while withholding its resolution. Students receive a description of the situation, analyse it, propose possible courses of action of their own, compare them and decide what should be done.
Columbia University (2019) divides case studies differently: directed case, dilemma or decision case, analysis or issue case, and interrupted case.
Below we explain these types of case study with examples and suggestions for using them:
1. Retrospective case study
Here the student learns the whole history of the problem:
problem > action > solution > result
For example, a company noticed a fall in customer numbers. It carried out research, improved the quality of its customer service and introduced a new loyalty programme. After several months, customer numbers rose again. The student therefore knows the solution. Their task might be to answer questions such as:
- Why did the company choose these solutions?
- What worked, and what could have been done differently?
- Could these solutions be applied in another company?
When to choose it:
- When you want students to analyse the experience of other companies and consider what can be learned from them.
- When you want students to apply solutions from the case they analysed to a new, similar situation.
2. Decision-forcing case study
Here the student learns the problem while the solution stays hidden, and has to decide how to resolve it:
situation > problem > data > STOP
For example, a hotel is losing customers. The director has a limited budget and is weighing three options: renovating the rooms, training staff, or a new promotional campaign. The student has to decide which the director should choose, and why.
When to choose it: When you want to develop competences such as decision-making, problem-solving and argumentation.
3. Analysis case study
A student does not always have to reach a solution straight away. Sometimes understanding what is going on is what counts:
what the problem is > what it consists of > who it affects > when it appears > what causes it > what its consequences are and for whom
For example, a restaurant has noticed a rise in customer complaints. Students analyse what the complaints concern, when they appear most often, which groups they affect, and the possible causes and consequences of the problem for the restaurant, its management and other stakeholders.
When to use it: When you want to teach students to analyse a problem thoroughly before they move on to looking for solutions.
4. Directed case study
Here the student analyses a specific situation through a series of questions prepared by the lecturer. The questions lead them step by step through the analysis and point to the elements of the case they should attend to.
description of the situation > question 1 > question 2 > question 3 > question 4 > conclusions
For example, a company has noticed a drop in sales. Students receive data along with specific questions: In which period did sales fall the most? Which products did the fall affect? Which customer groups bought less? Which factors could have influenced the drop? Which data is missing that would better explain it?
When to use it: When you want students to focus on particular elements of the case connected to what they are learning in class.
5. Interrupted case
The student works through the problem gradually, as new information arrives. The pattern looks like this:
information > analysis > new information > fresh analysis > decision
For example, a restaurant chain notices a fall in customer ratings. Students first receive the survey results and identify possible causes. They then receive data on service times, staff shortages and menu changes, after which they analyse the problem again and check whether their earlier conclusions still hold.
When to use it: When you want to develop competences such as decision-making under uncertainty, flexible thinking and data analysis.
Which case study should you choose?
The basis for choosing a type of case study is what you want the student to do:
| If you want students to… | Choose |
|---|---|
| analyse a solution that was used in a real situation | Retrospective case |
| decide for themselves what should be done | Decision case |
| identify the causes and understand the problem | Analysis case |
| learn how to analyse a case step by step | Directed case |
| respond to new information as it appears | Interrupted case |
These types can be combined. A single case may be retrospective and analytical at the same time, or begin as an analysis and end by requiring a decision. The first thing to settle is therefore this question:
What should the student be able to do as a result of this activity?
Only then should you choose the case study. Once you know the type you need, see how to write a case study step by step.
Preparing the activity
Once you have chosen the type of case study, the instructions you give students decide how much they get out of it. A clear set of instructions shows, step by step:
- what the student has to do,
- which materials or data to use,
- what the final product of the activity should be,
- the format for submitting it, and
- the criteria it will be assessed against.
If you allow students to use AI, say when and how they may use it, and the role AI should play in the activity. Writing the prompt yourself helps here, so that AI supports the student during the analysis while leaving the task itself to them.
If you want to see how a student actually carried out the activity and how they used AI, you can use Turingo.net to analyse their working process.
Bibliography
Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning. (2019). What is case method teaching? https://ctl.columbia.edu/resources-and-technology/resources-old/case-method/
Harvard Kennedy School (n.d.). Teaching with cases tip sheet. https://case.hks.harvard.edu/content/Teaching%20with%20Cases_Faculty%20Tip%20Sheet.pdf
