Case study research has a long and varied history within and beyond the social sciences. This collection brings together the key articles on this method from the full range of social science disciplines: sociology, political science, policy and public administration studies, law, social work, anthropology, community and urban studies, business and management studies, economics and psychology. The foundations and debates central to this method are exhaustively covered. The first volume covers the early influential statements and examples of case study research. The following three volumes explore issues pertaining to the generalizability of this method, the meaning of ′case′, the appropriate methods for collecting data and how case study research enables ′understanding′ and ′explanation′. Together they form the most comprehensive collection of articles available in this important research method. Matthew David is a Senior Lecturer in Applied Social Science at Durham University, and has undertaken research in the areas of new social movements, online data-services in higher education, online training in rural areas and forms of free online music sharing. He is author of Science in Society (Palgrave 2005) and Peer to Peer and the Music Industry (SAGE 2010), and co-author of Social Research (SAGE, latest edition 2011).