方法对比

	嵌入式案例研究	行动研究	民族志	扎根理论
领域	质性	质性研究	质性	质性研究
方法族	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline	Process / pipeline
起源年份	1984–1995 (Yin's foundational editions; Stake 1995)	1946	c. 1922 (Malinowski's Argonauts of the Western Pacific)	1967
提出者	Robert K. Yin (systematic case study design); Robert E. Stake (naturalistic tradition)	Kurt Lewin; expanded by Kemmis, McTaggart, Reason & Bradbury	Bronisław Malinowski (modern ethnography); rooted in 19th-century anthropology	Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss
类型	Qualitative research method	Method	Qualitative fieldwork tradition	Method
开创性文献	Yin, R. K. (2018). Case Study Research and Applications: Design and Methods (6th ed.). Sage. ISBN: 978-1506336169	Lewin, K. (1946). Action research and minority problems. Journal of Social Issues, 2(4), 34–46.	Hammersley, M. & Atkinson, P. (2019). Ethnography: Principles in Practice (4th ed.). Routledge. ISBN: 978-1138504462	Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Aldine.
别名	embedded single-case design, multiple-unit case study, nested case study, embedded unit analysis	Participatory Action Research, PAR, Collaborative Inquiry	Etnografi, participant observation, fieldwork, ethnographic research	GT, Grounded Theory Approach
相关	6	1	5	3
摘要	An embedded case study is a case study design in which one or more units of analysis are nested within a single overarching case. Rather than treating the case as a single, holistic entity, the researcher deliberately examines multiple sub-units — such as departments within an organisation, classrooms within a school, or programmes within a hospital — to build a richer, more nuanced understanding of the phenomenon under study. Formalised by Robert K. Yin, the design is contrasted with the holistic single-case study and with multi-case (multiple-case) designs.	Action research is a collaborative research methodology in which researchers work with practitioners and community members to investigate a problem, implement change, and evaluate outcomes, cycling through reflection, action, and learning. Developed by Kurt Lewin (1946), action research bridges research and practice, aiming simultaneously to produce knowledge and practical improvement.	Ethnography is a qualitative research tradition in which a researcher immerses themselves in a social group or community over an extended period — typically three to six months or longer — to study its culture, values, and behaviours in their natural setting. Originating in social and cultural anthropology, and consolidated as a rigorous method by Bronisław Malinowski in the early twentieth century, ethnography produces rich, contextualised accounts of how people live, work, and make meaning together.	Grounded Theory (GT) is a systematic qualitative research methodology in which theory emerges directly from data through iterative analysis, rather than being imposed before data collection. Developed by Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss in 1967, GT prioritizes generating explanatory frameworks grounded in evidence.