This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ruddin, L. P. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

You Can Generalize Stupid! Social Scientists, Bent Flyvbjerg, and Case Study Methodology

Wirral, United Kingdom

It is an issue of some contestation as to whether generalization is an appropriate requisite to demand of case study research in any case. The author argues that the critique is misdirected, and based on Bent Flyvbjerg’s concept of a "critical case," ways of generalizing from case studies are indicated (Iran/Iraq War of 1980). In addition, the author illustrates that the case study is idyllic for generalizing using the brand of test that Karl Popper called "falsification." Conversely, the author exhibits Robert Stake’s ethos that case studies need not make any claims about the generalizability of their findings but rather, what is crucial is the use others make of them—chiefly, that they feed into processes of "naturalistic generalization."

Key Words: generalization • critical case • Aristotle • Flyvbjerg’s misunderstandings • Iran/Iraq War

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?