DESC Graziadio Decision Sciences

Using Business Source Complete to Search for Case Studies

There are two ways of locating case studies in Business Source Premier.

1. One method is to use a Document Type limiter field selecting Case Study when searching for topics of interest. 

Of note: the writing style of the case studies from many sources in Business Source Premier will often be more formal in tone. For case studies that read more like stories, try searching for Harvard Business Review Case Studies in Business Source Premier as noted below or using Emerald Management Xtra to look for cases.

2. The other method is to search for case studies within a publication by Publication Name, such as Harvard Business Review. While Business Source Premier does not contain Harvard Business School cases, this database does provide case studies from HBR!

Please note, if you are looking for Harvard Business School Cases, these are separately published from Harvard Business School Publishing. HBS cases are not available via the Pepperdine Library. See our FAQ on HBS cases for more details. 

Using Emerald Management Xtra to Search for Case Studies​

When using Emerald Management Xtra, search for "case studies" and browse within The Case Journal, which is the official journal of The CASE Association, one of the most prominent US case study organizations. The Case Journal is described by Emerald Management Xtra as "the leading online, double-blind, peer-reviewed journal featuring factual teaching cases and case exercises." 

Note: Interlibrary Loan is available to current Pepperdine students, faculty, and staff when full-text is not available. Make an interlibrary loan request or visit the interlibrary loan page for more information.

Using the Open Access (OA) Journal from the Society for Case Research

• Journal of Case Studies

One final option for locating case studies is to use the open access journal from the Society for Case Research called Journal of Case Studies. This is an open source journal which provides direct access to the full-text of the articles. Users may browse by issue or search by keyword. Journal of Case Studies (as described by Cabell's Directories of Publishing Opportunities) publishes "peer-reviewed case studies of real world business problems designed for faculty and students to adopt for usage in the classroom."

Outlined below are strategies for locating case studies, research reports, and white papers related to technology evaluation, implementation, deployment, lessons learned, etc. 

Library Resources for Technology Related Case Studies
Specific to case studies in IT and technology, the library has online full-text access to the Journal of Information Technology Case and Application Research from 1999-present. The following is the description of the journal from the publisher's website: 

The Journal of Information Technology Case and Application Research (JITCAR) publishes case-based research on the application of information technology and information systems to the solution of organizational problems.  Research articles may focus on public, private, or governmental organizations of any size, from start-up through multinational. JITCAR seeks case examples from countries of all types – advanced, newly industrialized, developing, or under-developed. The research can focus on any type of application, issue, problem or technology, including, for example, artificial intelligence, business process reengineering, cross-cultural issues, cybernetics, decision support systems, electronic commerce, enterprise systems, groupware, the human side of IT, information architecture, joint application development, knowledge based systems, local area networks, management information systems, office automation, outsourcing, prototyping, robotics, security, social networking, software as a service, supply chain management, systems analysis, telemedicine, ubiquitous computing, video-conferencing, and Web 2.0.

Recommended Library Resource for In-Depth Technology Research Reports: Refinitiv
While the Pepperdine Libraries do not subscribe to Forrester Research or Gartner, Refinitiv is a great research tool and has in-depth reports that may be helpful.

Recommended Library Resource for Data and Briefs on Trends in Technology: eMarketer

Data from sources such as GfK, Gartner, IDC are included in this resource for professionals doing business in a digital world. eMarketer monitors over 3,000 sources and annually presents hundreds of reports and forecasts, thousands of charts, briefs, and interviews. Coverage includes virtually every major topic related to digital marketing and every key geographic region.

Outside Resources for Technology Related White Papers
Outside of the Pepperdine Libraries resources, there are a number of free sites that often require registration. Though they are helpful for providing the benefits of particular technology products, it is important to keep in mind the context of their reports and representation of a product or tool as they are often used as marketing or promotional material for a specific product. 

• Find White Papers provides technology research for business professionals and covers a wide range of areas including enterprise applications, IT management, and storage. It appears that access is free but users must provide a valid email address. 
• Tech Republic also specializes in white papers and claims to be the largest database of white papers and case studies anywhere. It is part of CNet networks and requires free registration.
• IEEE Spectrum White Papers is another source of technology whitepapers in the areas of biomedical, computing, green tech, robotics, semiconductors, and telecom among other topics. 
• Computerworld Magazine also has whitepapers that are free with registration. Note: Computerworld Digital Magazine is also available in full-text through our Business Source Premier library database.
• Bitpipe bills itself as the enterprise IT professional's guide to information technology resources and provides white papers. It requires free registration.