I am a part time PhD student conducting a case study following Yin's methodology. I am grappling with defining the case and the units of analysis and could do with some help.
I am a nurse and am looking at a process, "How care home residents transition to and from the emergency department".
I am using multiple qualitative methods to collect data. Non-participant observations in care homes, ambulances and emergency departments. Interviews with staff, residents and relatives and, documentary analysis.
Three main propositions were derived from the literature: communication, resident and relative involvement and staff attitudes and skillsets. Each of these propositions are broken down into specific elements. Communication, for example, includes verbal handovers between staff. Which can be reduced to finer detail such as content, body language and use of humour.
I am collecting data and need to define the case and units of analysis before I commence data analysis. Following a recent debate with my supervisors this is my current position:
Case - the process of care home residents transition to and from the emergency department.
Units of observation - the actors in the non-participant observations, interviews and documents.
Units of analysis - the smallest units derived from the theoretical propositions, content, verbal and non-verbal communication in a handover/handoff, for example. Further units may emerge as the data is analysed.
I would be grateful for any views on my current thinking, please.
Mark
Can you tell us more about what you are studying? With Yin's framework, the cases are usually quite clearly defined (e.g., organizations or units in organizations or communities etc.).
Thank you David L Morgan
I am studying care home residents care as they move from their Care Home (CH) to the Emergency Department (ED) or from the ED to the CH. I am an ED nurse who has an interest in the care of this cohort of people.
The process starts when the resident becomes ill / injured and needs to attend an ED. The process continues through the ambulance journey and time in the ED until they are discharged or admitted a ward. The study was also designed to capture the return transition of care from the ED to the CH.
Multiple qualitative methods are being employed. Interviews of CH residents, their relatives and both ED and CH staff. Non participant observations of care in the CH, ambulance and ED are being conducted. Finally, documents pertaining to the CH residents care and hospital policy documents are being collected.
Logistics have dictated that all the CH residents I have encountered to date have all attended the same ED. Please let me know if there is anything further I can add and thank you so much for your interest.
My current thinking:
Case - Transition of care of CH residents attending anonymous ED
Units of analysis - CH residents attending anonymous ED
Sources of information / data sources - Observations, interviews, documents and reports
I am not sure that I follow all the details of your study, but it seems to me that each person would a case. As for "unit of analysis," does Yin use that terminology? In general, it comes from quantitative data analysis, rather than anything in qualitative research.