The Case Study Protocol

The case study protocol is a guideline to highlight the most important issues in doing a quality piece of case study research. “A case study protocol has only one thing in common with a survey questionnaire: both are directed at a single data point - either a single case (even if the case is part of a larger, multiple-case study) or a single respondent. Beyond this similarity are major differences. The protocol is more than a questionnaire or instrument. First, the protocol contains the instrument, but it also contains the procedures and general rules to be followed in using the protocol.

Second, the protocol is directed at an entirely different party than that of a survey questionnaire, explained below. Third, having a case study protocol is desirable under all circumstances, but it is essential if you are doing a multiple-case study.

"The protocol is a major way of increasing the reliability of case study research and is intended to guide the investigator in carrying out the data collection from a single case (again, even if the single case is one of several in a multiple-case study)” (Yin, 2009). "As a general principle, a case study protocol should have the following sections: (a) An overview of the case study project [project objectives and auspices, case study issues, and relevant readings about the topic being investigated]; (b) Field procedures [presentation of credentials, access to the case study ‘sites’, language pertaining to the protection of human subjects, sources of data, and procedural remainders]; (c) Case study questions [the specific questions that the case study investigator must keep in mind in collecting data, ‘table shells’ for specific arrays of data, and the potential sources of information for answering each question]; (d) A guide for the case study report [outline, format for the data, use and presentation of other documentation, and bibliographical information]."

Yin (2009) states “A quick glance at these topics will indicate why the protocol is so important. First, it keeps you targeted on the topic of the case study. Second, preparing the protocol forces you to anticipate several problems, including the way that the case study reports are to be completed. This means, for instance, that you will have to identify the audience for your case study report even before you have conducted your case study. Such forethought will help to avoid mismatches.

(a) Overview of the Case Study Project: the overview should cover the background information about the project, the substantive issues being investigated, and the

informed reader (that is, someone familiar with the general topic of inquiry) the case study’s purpose and setting. Some of the materials (such as a summary describing the project) may be needed for other purposes anyway, so that writing the overview should be seen as a doubly worthwhile activity. In the same vein, a well-conceived overview even may later from the basis for the background and introduction to the final case study report.

(b) Field Procedures: this contrasting process of doing data collection leads to the need to have explicit and well-planned field procedures encompassing guidelines for

‘coping’ behaviours. Imagine, for instance, sending a youngster to camp; because you do not know what to expect, the best preparation is to have the resources to be prepared. Case study field procedures should be the same way. With the preceding orientation in mind, the field procedures of the protocol need to emphasise the major tasks in collecting data, including: (i) Gaining access to key organisations or interviewees; (ii) Having sufficient resources while in the field - including a personal computer, writing instruments, paper, paper clips, and a pre-established, quiet place to write notes privately; (iii) Developing a procedure for calling for assistance and guidance, if needed, from other case study investigators or colleagues; (iv) Making a clear schedule of the data collection activities that are expected to be completed within specified periods of time; (v) Providing for unanticipated events, including changes in the availability of interviewees as well as changes in the mood and motivation of the case study investigator.

(c) Case Study Questions: “the heart of the protocol is a set of substantive questions reflecting your actual line of inquiry. Each question should be accompanied by a list of likely sources of evidence. Such sources may include the names of individual interviewees, documents, or observations. This crosswalk between the questions of interest and the likely sources of evidence is extremely helpful in collecting case study data. Before arriving on the case study scene, for instance, a case study investigator can quickly review the major questions that the data collection should cover.

heavily on information from individual interviewees, your conclusions cannot be based entirely on interviews as a source of information (you would then have collected information about individuals’ reports about the organisation, not necessarily about organisational events as they actually had occurred)” (Yin, 2009).

(d) Guide for the Case Study Report: “this element is generally missing in most case study plans. Investigators neglect to think about the outline, format, or audience for the case study report until after the data have been collected. Yet, some planning at this preparatory stage - admittedly out of sequence in the typical conduct of most research - means that a tentative outline can (and should) appear in the case study protocol.

"To the greatest extent possible, the basic outline of the case study report should be part of the protocol. This will facilitate the collection of relevant data, in the appropriate format, and will reduce the possibility that a return visit to the case study site will be necessary. At the same time, the existence of such an outline should not imply rigid adherence to a pre-designed protocol. In fact, case study plans can change as a result of the initial data collection, and you are encouraged to consider these flexibilities - if used properly and without bias - to be an advantage of the case study method” (Yin, 2009).