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Cited by 2,023Qualitative Comparative Analysis ResearchQualitative Research Methods and ApplicationsQualitative Research Methods and Ethics

`How many cases do I need?': On science and the logic of case selection in field-based research

Small, Mario Luis·2009·Ethnography
DOI 10.1177/1466138108099586
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Abstract

Today, ethnographers and qualitative researchers in fields such as urban poverty, immigration, and social inequality face an environment in which their work will be read, cited, and assessed by demographers, quantitative sociologists, and even economists. They also face a demand for case studies of poor, minority, or immigrant groups and neighborhoods that not only generate theory but also somehow speak to empirical conditions in other cases (not observed). Many have responded by incorporating elements of quantitative methods into their designs, such as selecting respondents `at random' for small, in-depth interview projects or identifying `representative' neighborhoods for ethnographic case studies, aiming to increase generalizability. This article assesses these strategies and argues that they fall short of their objectives. Recognizing the importance of the predicament underlying the strategies — to determine how case studies can speak empirically to other cases — it presents two alternatives to current practices, and calls for greater clarity in the logic of design when producing ethnographic research in a multi-method intellectual environment.

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Crossref · 10.1177/1466138108099586

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63 of 63 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • The study reports on a small sample of older adults, which is not intended to be generalizable to all older adults, but to provide a nuanced empirical description of how this group of older adult participants use Alexa.

    “Lastly, we report on a small sample of older adults, which is not intended to be generalizable to all older adults [30], rather to provide a nuanced empirical description of how this group of older adult participants use Alexa.”

    From Studying Exploration & Long-Term Use of Voice Assistants by Older Adults (2023) · cites this paper as [30]

  • The study drew on logical inference rather than sample-based logic to identify the main factors influencing knowledge, lives, and imagination around climate urbanism in the neoliberal present.

    “Rather than sample-based logic, we drew on logical inference (Small 2009) to identify the main factors influencing knowledge, lives, and imagination around climate urbanism in the neoliberal present.”

    From Design for Climate Change in the Neoliberal Present: Gentrification, Ecocide, and the Loss of Urbanity in New York City (2022) · cites this paper as Small 2009

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Authors
Small, M. L.
Affiliations
University of Chicago (US)
Corresponding author
Small, Mario Luis
ORCID
Small, Mario Luis
Venue
Ethnography
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2009-03
Volume
10
Issue
1
Pages
5-38
ISSN
  • 1466-1381 (ISSN-L)
  • 1741-2714
DOI
10.1177/1466138108099586
OpenAlex
W2168033482
Cited by
2,023
References
63
Citations by year
2026: 222 · 2025: 173 · 2024: 172 · 2023: 158 · 2022: 178 · 2021: 208 · 2020: 156 · 2019: 137 · 2018: 110 · 2017: 107 · 2016: 99 · 2015: 90 · 2014: 74 · 2013: 49 · 2012: 49
FWCI
97.04
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
Ethnography (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Qualitative Comparative Analysis Research
  • Social Sciences › Education › Qualitative Research Methods and Applications
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Qualitative Research Methods and Ethics
Keywords
ethnographic case studies, generalizability, qualitative research design, urban poverty, immigration, social inequality, representative sampling, multi-method research

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