Case Study Approach

A case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context, especially when the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not clearly evident60 (Yin 1994: 13).

In the present study, the case study strategy was selected, because the existing knowledge of success factors of place marketing was scarce, one purpose of the research was to build a theoretical framework, the phenomenon appeared to be complex, causal questions were not possible for the study, and the phenomenon should be studied in its context. Also, a case study was preferred, because the study aimed at creating a holistic view of place marketing, and case studies are important because they enable a holistic view of the process. (Gummesson 1991: 76).

According to Yin (1994), case studies can be used to explore, describe and explain different phenomena. Case studies allow the investigator to look for the roots of issues, and to conceptualise and seek the underlying reality (Easton 1995). Of the research strategies that include case study, experiment, survey, archival analysis and history, the case study method was selected for the present study. The case study research strategy has been used in city and regional research, organisational and management studies, and in social sciences. Case study

60 _{Yin 1994: 13 adds to the definition the second technical part: “The case study inquiry copes with the}

technically distinctive situation in which there will be many more variables of interest than data points, and as one result relies on multiple sources of evidence, with data needing to converge in a triangulating fashion, and as another result benefits from the prior development of theoretical propositions to guide data collection and analysis.”

research typically combines various methods of collecting data, such as archives, interviews and observation (Yin 1994: 14, 23). Case studies can generate ideas when building theories (Coffey & Atkinson 1996; Gummesson 1991). An action-analytic approach was the main conceptual research approach in the present study61. This is a clinical, diagnostic case approach, aiming at an understanding of phenomena, using analysis of empirical case data. (Cf. Näsi 1983; Pihlanto 1994; Routila 1986; Kavanagh 1994; Denzin & Lincoln 1994).

Case study is considered a comprehensive research strategy (Yin 1994: 13; cf. Eisenhardt 1989: 534; Denzin & Lincoln 1994:12). Broad unanimity prevails about when a case study is useful in research: in theory building and analysis (Bonoma 1985: 206; Eisenhardt 1989), when a phenomenon is broad and complex, when the existing body of knowledge is thin, when a phenomenon cannot be studied outside its natural context (Bonoma 1985), in new topic areas (Eisenhardt 1989: 532), and when complex social systems are studied (Pihlanto 1994: 371). The case study brings direct observation and systematic interviewing to the data sources. Using a case study involved multiple data sources (Bonoma 1985: 203), as well as combining data collection methods (Eisenhardt 1989: 534). Case studies are especially powerful for contemporary events and if the investigator has little control over the event. (Yin 1994: 1-9).

In the present study, a multiple-case design62 was adopted, which indicates results that will confirm both literal and theoretical replication. The decision to use multiple cases is the same as one to use multiple experiments. If a study contains more than a single case, the study has to use a multiple-case design (Yin 1994: 38-45). If the case will produce similar results, the selection is based on literal replication, and if contrasting results for predictable reasons, theoretical replication is used. Each individual case study in this research forms a whole study, and across cases the research report indicates the replication logic. Contrasting results between the U.S. and the Northern European cases were expected, and from Northern Europe mainly obvious confirmation for literal replication of the framework’s success factors. A

61 _{For instance, the use of participation in planning meetings in the Helsinki Region´s strategy group was an}

element showing an action analytic approach.

single case study is argued to be feasible when it represents the critical case in testing a well- formulated theory, or when the case represents an extreme, deviant or unique case.

Study designs in a case study are either holistic or embedded. An embedded design, employing multiple units of analysis was chosen, as each individual case has multiple units of analysis besides the holistic organising umbrella approach. The success factors (sub-units) of the framework are analysed separately, in the place marketing practices of each case location. Subunits can often increase opportunities for extensive analysis, enhancing the insights into the single case. (Yin 1994: 39-51).

The limitations of a case study must be recognised (e.g. Patton 1990; Yin 1994; Eisenhardt 1989; Miles & Huberman 1994). The ability to generalise the results from a case study is discussed. On the other hand, the non-generalisable results can be interesting for understanding specific situations and their contexts (Patton 1990), and the value of a case study can be that they are theoretically representative and explanatory. Another limitation of a case study can be that the investigator is not completely objective (Patton 1990; Lincoln & Cuba 1985). However, the case study does not represent “a sample, and case study expands and generalises theories through analytical generalisation” (Yin 1994: 10). Also, the case study uses key informant research to produce data, which is a character of many quantitative studies, too (Bryman 1995: 46). In conclusion of the several forms of case study, the present study is a multiple-case study which has an embedded, longitudinal (rather than cross- sectional) and theory building (rather than theory testing) case design.