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A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research

Jane F. Gilgun, PhD, LICSW, is associate professor, School of Social Work, University of Minnesota, 224 Church Street, SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455.

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Jane F. Gilgun, A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research, Social Work , Volume 39, Issue 4, July 1994, Pages 371–380, https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/39.4.371

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Case study research is a good fit with many forms of social work practice. Although disparaged as uncontrolled and uninterpretable, the case study has great potential for building social work knowledge for assessment, intervention, and outcome. This article defines case study research, presents guidelines for evaluating case studies, and shows the relevance of case studies to social work research. Guidelines for evaluation also are guidelines for developing and interpreting case studies that will meet the rigorous demands of scientific research and be useful to social work practitioners.

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A Case for the Case Study: How and Why They Matter

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  • Published: 06 June 2017
  • Volume 45 , pages 189–200, ( 2017 )

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  • Jeffrey Longhofer 1 ,
  • Jerry Floersch 1 &
  • Eric Hartmann 2  

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In this special issue we have asked the contributors to make a case for the case study. The guest editors, Jeffrey Longhofer, Jerry Floersch and Eric Hartmann, intergrate ideas from across the disciplines to explore the complexties of case study methods and theory. In education, Gary Thomas explores the importance of ethnographic case studies in understanding the relationships among schools, teachers, and students. Lance Dodes and Josh Dodes use the case study to articulate a psychoanalytic approach to addiction. In policy and generalist practice, Nancy Cartwright and Jeremy Hardie elaborate a model for a case-by-case approach to prediction and the swampy ground prediction serves up to practitioners. Christian Salas and Oliver Turnbull persuasively write about the role of the case study in neuro-psychoanalysis and illustrate it with a case vignette. In political science, Sanford Schram argues for a bottom up and ethnographic approach to studying policy implementation by describing a case of a home ownership program in Philadelphia. Eric Hartman queers the case study by articulating its role in deconstructing normative explanations of sexuality. In applied psychology, Daniel Fishman describes a comprehensive applied psychology perspective on the paradigmatic case study. Richard Miller and Miriam Jaffe offer us important ways of thinking about writing the case study and the use of multi-media. Each contributor brings a unique perspective to the use of the case study in their field, yet they share practical and philosophical assumptions.

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Longhofer, J., Floersch, J. & Hartmann, E. A Case for the Case Study: How and Why They Matter. Clin Soc Work J 45 , 189–200 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10615-017-0631-8

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  4. Social Work Case Planning Guide – What You Need | Examples & Studies">2023 Social Work Case Planning Guide – What You Need | Examples &...

    Social work case studies may involve a wide range of social work areas, including: child welfare mental health substance abuse domestic violence homelessness, and more…

  5. Interactive Cases | New Directions in Social Work">Interactive Cases | New Directions in Social Work

    Interactive Cases. Select any of the modules shown below to begin. Each case provides unique, realistic, nuanced, and in-depth situations for students to reinforce and apply their expanding skills and knowledge in an active "learning-by-doing" format.

  6. Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research - Oxford Academic">A Case for Case Studies in Social Work Research - Oxford Academic

    Case study research is a good fit with many forms of social work practice. Although disparaged as uncontrolled and uninterpretable, the case study has great potential for building social work knowledge for assessment, intervention, and outcome.

  7. Case for the Case Study: How and Why They Matter | Clinical Social ...">A Case for the Case Study: How and Why They Matter | Clinical ...

    We have invited scholars from education, political science, social work, applied psychology, addictions, psychoanalysis, queer studies, policy, and neuro-psychoanalysis to reflect on how the case study has been used across diverse fields of practice, in the production and dissemination of new knowledge and in creative pedagogy.

  8. Case Studies in Social Work Practice, 3rd Edition | Wiley">Case Studies in Social Work Practice, 3rd Edition | Wiley

    The case studies in this book bridge the gap between the classroom and the field by allowing students to discover the when, why, and how of social work principles. Brief but comprehensive topic overviews are brought to life by case studies that apply general theories to the work of social work.

  9. Adelphi University">January Final full Word Document - Adelphi University

    The overview of the case studies, by Tatyana Gimein, (Co-Chair of the Project before her retirement from ACS), highlights key elements of each case study, and the profound challenges facing the families, staff and communities involved. The decision to use real case studies in a curriculum integration effort was adopted after

  10. Case Studies in Social Work Practice - Google Books">Case Studies in Social Work Practice - Google Books

    Case Studies in Social Work Practice Craig W. LeCroy John Wiley & Sons, Jan 14, 2014 - Political Science - 432 pages A practical approach to understanding social work concepts in action that...