What is the use of a single-case study in management research?

• Autor(a) principal: Mariotto, Fábio Luiz
• Data de Publicação: 2014
• Outros Autores: Zanni, Pedro Pinto, Moraes, Gustavo Hermínio Salati Marcondes de
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Revista de Administração de Empresas
• Texto Completo: https://bibliotecadigital.fgv.br/ojs/index.php/rae/article/view/28862
• topic: management research; single-case study; research methodology; scientific method; knowledge acquisition; investigación en ciencias de la gestión; estudios de casos puntuales; metodología de la investigación; método científico; adquisición de conocimiento; pesquisa de gestão; estudo de caso único; metodologia de pesquisa; método científico; aquisição de conhecimento

The purpose of this article is to present a defense of the use of single case studies in management research. The defense is necessary because this type of research has been relegated to a secondary role, or even rejected, by many researchers, who consider it unscientific. Evidence of this low status is the fact that most reputable academic journals in management publish few articles based on single-case studies. In this paper, we examine in detail the objections to the use of such cases in management research. We show the efforts made by some researchers to answer these objections and we show quality criteria for research that are alternatives to the criteria used in the so-called “scientific method.” Our analysis suggests that a better understanding – by researchers with different methodological preferences – of the arguments for each particular use of the single-case study as a research method would allow a better dialogue between researchers and benefit management research as a whole.