CONSTRUCTING RESEARCH WITH CASE STUDIES

A case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its real-life context. The case study research method is popular across various disciplines, however, critics of the method argue that results from this form of research are applicable only to the case studied and cannot be generalized further. In the field of construction engineering and management, the number of papers employing case study research methods over the past decade has increased substantially. The question that arises as the method proliferates is whether case studies are being performed with sufficient validity and reliability to maximize the extent to which the findings can be generalized. Given the unique, project-based nature of the construction industry, in this manuscript, we discuss research design and data collection strategies construction engineering and management researchers can employ to improve validity, reliability and the extent to which they can generalize from their findings.