Case Study Research in Software Engineering: Guidelines and Examples

APPENDIX A

CHECKLISTS FOR READING AND REVIEWING CASE STUDIES

A.1 DESIGN OF THE CASE STUDY

1. What is the case and its units of analysis?
2. Are clear objectives, preliminary research questions, hypotheses (if any) defined in advance?
3. Is the theoretical basis—relation to existing literature or other cases—defined?
4. Are the authors? intentions with the research made clear?
5. Is the case adequately defined (size, domain, process, subjects?)?
6. Is a cause-effect relation under study? If yes, is it possible to distinguish the cause from other factors using the proposed design?
7. Does the design involve data from multiple sources (data triangulation), using multiple methods (method triangulation)?
8. Is there a rationale behind the selection of subjects, roles, artifacts, viewpoints, and so on?
9. Is the specified case relevant to validly address the research questions (construct validity)?
10. Is the integrity of individuals/organizations taken into account?

A.2 DATA COLLECTION

11. Is a case study protocol for data collection and analysis derived (what, why, how, when)? Are procedures for its update defined?

12. Are multiple data sources and collection methods planned (triangulation)?

13. Are measurement instruments and procedures well defined (measurement definitions, interview questions)?

14. Are the planned methods and measurements sufficient to fulfill the objective of the study?

15. Is the study design approved by a review board, and has informed consent obtained from individuals and organizations? ...