Skip to ContentGo to accessibility pageKeyboard shortcuts menu
OpenStax Logo
Writing Guide with Handbook

Introduction

Writing Guide with HandbookIntroduction
The Rosetta Stone shows a script made up of small pictures and text, also called Egyptian hieroglyphs.
Figure 15.1 Throughout history, language differences have affected aspects of human life such as trade, diplomacy, and culture. Found in 1799 and at first indecipherable, the Rosetta Stone, pictured here, marks an important milestone in helping language researchers understand Egyptian hieroglyphics. In addition to language-related artifacts, case studies are another, far more frequently used tool that researchers rely on to understand how people learn and use languages. (credit: “Rosetta Stone” by Ryan Somma/ideonexus/flickr, CC BY 2.0)

Chapter Outline

15.1 Tracing a Broad Issue in the Individual
15.2 Case Study Trailblazer: Vilayanur S. Ramachandran
15.3 Glance at Genre: Observation, Description, and Analysis
15.4 Annotated Sample Reading: Case Study on Louis Victor "Tan" Leborgne
15.5 Writing Process: Thinking Critically About How People and Language Interact
15.6 Editing Focus: Words Often Confused
15.7 Evaluation: Presentation and Analysis of Case Study
15.8 Spotlight on … Applied Linguistics
15.9 Portfolio: Your Own Uses of Language

Academic research is often about finding answers to human questions. How do people live, and how do they learn? In what ways is language an expression of thought? Why do people act as they do? How do people’s feelings affect their behavior? Answers to these questions are not easy to find because many are hidden in the human brain. Indeed, researchers may spend years of study looking for such answers and, in doing so, may discover only more questions.

How do you begin to find answers to such behavioral research questions? One research tool, the case study, gives researchers the opportunity to observe people and draw conclusions about their behavior. Education, psychology, sociology, and linguistics are just some of the research fields that rely on these studies as a way of drawing conclusions through observation.

A case study is a genre of academic writing in which researchers use firsthand evidence to share findings, draw hypotheses, and identify opportunities for further investigation. In this chapter, you will learn what a case study is, how it contributes to research, and how to conduct an informal one of your own.

PreviousNext
Order a print copy
Citation/Attribution

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/writing-guide/pages/1-unit-introduction
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a digital format, then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/writing-guide/pages/1-unit-introduction
Citation information

© Dec 19, 2023 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.