Single Case Study (single + case_study)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Single case study and evidence-based practice

JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC & MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 6 2005
T. STICKLEY ma rmn dipn dipcouns
With the current emphasis upon evidence-based medicine in statutory healthcare provision in the UK, mental health nursing is challenged to justify its approaches. Psychological theories, once taken for granted in mental health nursing, are now being challenged by new definitions of evidence. In this paper the authors focus upon the use of individual case study. The discussion questions the validity of applying the hierarchies of evidence proposed by evidence-based medicine to mental health nursing theory and practice. The role of case study as the prime source of evidence is argued and is justified in mental health nursing research and practice. [source]


Affidavits in conflict culture: A discursive analysis of a custody and access case

CONFLICT RESOLUTION QUARTERLY, Issue 3 2007
Tara Ney
Framed by meta-critical Foucauldian theories of knowledge, power, and discourse, but based on a close reading of excerpts from a single case study, we suggest that affidavits, as a technology in high-conflict custody and access divorce cases, can contribute to or construct conflict they intend to resolve. Issues of agency are addressed by shifting attention away from thinking in terms of a conflict between individuals to concerns of a system or structure. This "place" for doing conflict is seen as a "conflict culture." [source]


Effects of Qi therapy (external Qigong) on symptoms of advanced cancer: a single case study

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CANCER CARE, Issue 5 2005
M.S. LEE phd
The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of Qi therapy (external Qigong) in the management of symptoms of advanced cancer in a man. We used a single case study design to evaluate the effectiveness of Qi therapy (external Qigong) in a 35-year-old man with advanced cancer (Stage IV) involving metastases in the stomach, lung and bone (Karnofsky performance scale: KPS, 40: requires special care and assistance, disabled). Treatment involved six days of pre-assessment, eight treatment sessions on alternate days over 16 days, and a two-week follow-up phase. A visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to assess the patient's self-reported symptoms of cancer over the intervention and follow-up periods. Following treatment, VAS scores' analysis revealed beneficial effects on pain, vomiting, dyspnoea, fatigue, anorexia, insomnia, daily activity and psychological calmness. These improvements were maintained over the two-week follow-up phase. After the first Qi therapy session, the patient discontinued medication and could sit by himself; after the fourth session, the patient was able to walk and use the toilet without assistance (improvement in KPS: 70: care for self, unable to perform normal activity or to do active work). Although limited by the single case study approach, our results support previous studies on this topic and provide reasons to conduct controlled clinical trials. [source]


Craniomandibular pain, oral parafunctions, and psychological stress in a longitudinal case study

JOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 8 2004
M. K. A. van Selms
summary, In a single case study, the most frequently suggested contributing factors to craniomandibular pain, viz., oral parafunctions and psychological stress, were studied in more detail. During a 13-week study period, questionnaires were completed, in which, among others, jaw muscle pain, bruxism behaviour, and experienced/anticipated stress were noted. During about 40% of the nights, nocturnal masticatory muscle activity (NMMA) was recorded, using single-channel electromyography (EMG). The number of NMMA events per recorded hour was scored, using a detection threshold of 10% of the maximum voluntary contraction level. This threshold was established in a separate study, in which EMG was compared with polysomnography. Stepwise regression analyses indicated, that morning jaw muscle pain could be explained by evening jaw muscle pain for 64% and by alcohol intake for another 2%. In turn, evening jaw muscle pain was explained by daytime clenching for 56% and by vacuum sucking of the tongue for an additional 6%. Finally, daytime clenching was significantly explained by experienced stress for 30%. Data of the recorded nights showed, that variations in NMMA did not contribute to variations in morning jaw muscle pain. This case study corroborates the paradigm that experienced stress may be related to daytime clenching and, in turn, to evening and morning jaw muscle pain. [source]


Incorporating sustainable business practices into company strategy

BUSINESS STRATEGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT, Issue 1 2007
S. J. Fowler
Abstract Building on Hart's natural resource-based view of the firm, this paper reports the results of a case study of the privately owned, high-end outdoor apparel company Patagonia. In this study we examined Hart's three interlinking strategies of pollution prevention, product stewardship and sustainable development, and sought to test whether the resources for their implementation must be accumulated sequentially or whether they can be accumulated in parallel. The case study revealed that Patagonia has made significant progress, and continues to make progress, in each of these three areas. The results also suggested that the company's progress in one area has not necessarily been dependent on progress in another. While acknowledging the limitations of a single case study, we conclude that Patagonia's experience offers strong support for the notion that the resources for implementing strategies towards sustainable development can be accumulated in parallel , as opposed to sequentially. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source]