A case study should contain a complete
description of an issue including all known
events, people, and other impacting factors.
It represents a situation/concern to be
analyzed and resolved. Case studies should
allow students to:
1. Identify the Issue Must illustrate one
specific principles. Will constitute the heart
of the case study and thus influence all parts
including how it is represented. Case studies
are stories; they teach what stories teach
which happens to be what administrators
most need to learn. Create an Outline of the
Case Study Select facts and incidents that
will be easily recognized and understood by
participants. Organize these in a logical
sequence. Remove any inflated or
exaggerated components that might diminish
the authenticity of the case.
2. Identify the Stakeholders Clearly identify
each stakeholder in terms of his/her position.
Write up the case study. Whether the case
study is short or long, present a clear,
concise, and coherent portrait of the
stakeholders, events, and information. Use a
writing style that is simple and direct – no
long winded dissertations – one that speaks
right to the reader. Occasionally include brief dialogues to create interest and allow
readers to hear what the stakeholders in the
case study have to say for themselves. In the
case introduction, present your key
stakeholders and provide information that
clearly identifies him/her/them. Establish the
relationship between the stakeholders and
the issue under study. Include the
organizational context. Recount events or
incidents in chronological order. Occasionally
use “flashbacks” to fill in gaps or heighten
the sense of realism in the case. In certain
case studies, you may have events overlap,
occur simultaneously, or repeat themselves.
In the concluding sentence or paragraph of
the case study, point out the need for some
form of action: a decision, a recommendation
for resolution, a weighing of alternatives, or a
combination of these. End with a bridge of
some sort that leads from your case study
presentation to participant discussion.
3. Identify Stakeholder Perspectives
Understand that public administration is
politics – not the
“obvious politics” of high
stakes electioneering and policy making, but
the “other politics” of small-scale, behind the
scenes problems solving: the nature of
administrative casework follows accordingly. Stories don’t come ready-made but must be
formed through selection and shaping from
the flow of events: “Case synthesis precedes
case analysis.” Keep your eye on the entire
set of interacting decision-makers and
interlocking policies: it’s there you are most
likely to find any lurking problems of under-
determination. It’s usually helpful to break
out the goals being pursued, the variables
that must be modified to move toward the
goals, and the criteria to be borne in mind
when pursuing the goals; it’s in those criteria
that problems of over-determination are
likely to originate. Remember Mile’s Law:
“Where one stands depends on where one
sits.
” Search for the paradigm of the case,
but expect departures from the underlying
pattern; explore the progression of
circumstances.
4. Make a Recommendation Cases involve
choices; in a democracy, choice demands
justification, which further implies a process
of dialogue and an effort at persuasion. An
effective administrative analyst must be
ready to
“speak in tongues;” expect to work
in a variety of idioms and vocabularies. Most
important of all: Trust your own experience
and instincts!
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