Writing a case study
Introduction
Writing a case study is a common practice in many therapeutic fields. It allows one to reflect on personal practice, share experiences with colleagues, and illustrate different theoretical aspects. A tradition of how to write a case study is of common knowledge in those fields, and its structure may differ according to the nature of the practice. In psychology, where being supervised is common, transmitting and explaining the work with a patient orally is practiced regularly. When written, a case study might be used to demonstrate a therapeutic technique, a theoretical aspect in practice, or a discovery about the psychological structure of the patient.
In the Feldenkrais method, writing a case study has been mostly restricted to applications for Assistant Trainer and Trainer status. Its primary goal is to demonstrate sufficient competency in the individual work; therefore, it is often limited to a descriptive level without much theoretical argumentation. In addition, it is read by a small group of readers (the TAB), and the feedback is given within the framework of the existing guidelines. Having read a lot of case studies, the TABs have accumulated a know-how worth sharing.
This guide is designed with two key objectives: firstly, to enhance the quality of case studies within our community by establishing clear criteria for their content. Secondly, to inspire Feldenkrais practitioners to write and share case studies beyond the scope of applications, making them a regular practice in our community. By doing so, we can all benefit from the diverse experiences and insights shared, enriching our collective understanding of the Feldenkrais method.
Considering a case study as an opportunity to self-reflect, learn, and share with others, there is no one obligatory model or style that one has to follow. However, beyond the mere narrative of an encounter, it needs to be a study, meaning that it has to include at least two levels: a descriptive (what was done) and an explanative (why it was done), that are intertwined in a way that presents the work process and its inner logic. This logic is both subjective and objective: it inevitably presents the inner voice of the practitioner, their sensations, doubts, intuitions, and hesitations, yet it is embedded in the shared practice of the Feldenkrais method, that of creating a safe environment where the client can learn to move and act in new ways. The balance between the two aspects is essential for a good case study.
A guide to writing
There are many possibilities for sharing one’s work through a case study. It might be a presentation of one session, a series of them, or even parts of those used as illustrations within a broader theoretical framework. In all the above cases, though, the experience of writing in real-time is the most essential step. It is worth trying even if the attempt does not mature into a case study because it reflects the complexity of the work and the abundance of details. This narrative includes different aspects, such as actions, thoughts, decisions, emotions, intuitions, and conclusions. Converting them into a case study means selecting those that reflect the dialogue between a practitioner and a client, which creates a learning process for both in the best-case scenario. It is important to note that even when the dialogue does not lead to a change in the situation of the client and the process is not judged successful, the proceedings and the learning done might nevertheless be worth sharing since they reveal the decision-making process. The selection of the details to be presented creates a functional/developmental thread that makes it easier for the reader to follow. This thread, at times, emerges most clearly only as a result of writing and reflecting on what was done. The spontaneity of the encounter makes it so it may be neither clear nor visible before the writing process.
When writing a first case study, one might want to start with a relatively simple one. Less complex case studies would enable you to clearly explain what was done and be more concrete about the details. The way one builds the case study is personal and leaves much room for creativity. Nevertheless, the description should help the reader restructure the situation and understand the choices made along the way. It can be chronological, a description of the general structure and then a reflection on it, or even a more extensive account of one aspect of a lesson or a series that one deems necessary and interesting.
So, it needs to include information about:
Context. To understand the choices, the reader needs to be able to imagine the client through the writer's eyes. Who is the client, and what made them come to you? What is the nature of their interaction with you? What was your first impression and later observation? Were any other professionals involved?
Communication: Verbal and nonverbal communication are fundamental to our work. What was the nature of your dialogue? How much of your side was based on communication strategies? What could you feel about the client from your exchange?
Content: As said before, the content of the lesson is not merely a list of what was done but a description of the crucial actions, observations, sensations, and reactions that were woven together during the lesson. One presents a unique logic created during the lesson by exposing the reasons for what was done. The reasons can be both at the level of the practitioner's sensations and observations or common strategies employed in the method. In any case, language should be concrete: avoid general expressions such as “I explored the shoulders” and provide exact details of what was done.
Inner voice: The inner voice contains what the practitioner feels and thinks about the process in which they are immersed. Hypothesis formation, doubt, hesitation, and surprise are all legitimate aspects of our work. If we regard the work as an investigation of the individual organization, then questions are not less important than the answers they might bring.
Conclusions: A case study can have many possible conclusions, but they all present what one learned from the experience. It might be something about the client, a detail one would do differently, a new way to approach a problem or an insight about a specific functional relationship.