idiographic & nomothetic approaches Flashcards
describe the idiographic-nomothetic debate
- idiographic approach suggests psychology should be study of individuals because obtaining lots of detailed info about that individual/group allows us to understand human behaviour better
- nomothetic approach suggests psychology should be study of large/varied groups to make generalisations about what’s typical in different aspects of human behaviour (eg. establishing norms)
- this debate has implications for types of research method used by psychologists
key concepts of debtate: idiographic approach to psychological investigation
- number of participants in idiographic research is often small (often single case)
- research may include information from family, friends (etc.) but focus is on detail
- doesn’t mean generalisations are not made but initial focus is understanding individual
what type of data is gathered from most idiographic research
= qualitative
- eg. research on depression would be first-hand accounts for small number of people (case study)
- participants then interviewed in depth & focus may be on certain feature of human behaviour (eg. how participants coped with experience)
- uses fairly unstructured interview
- data then analysed & emergent themes identified
- conclusions may help other people going through similar experiences or help mental health professionals determine best practice
examples in psychology of idiographic approach
- humanistic & psychodynamic approaches
- eg. rogers sought to explain process of self-development, including role of unconditional positive regard = derived from in-depth conversations with clients in therapy
- eg. freud’s careful observation of individuals were basis of his explanations of human nature (eg. case of little hans)
key concepts of debtate: nomothetic approach to psychological investigation
- main aim = generalisation in order to create ‘laws’
- create general principles of behaviour (theories) which can be applied to individual situations (eg. drug therapy)
what type of data is most nomothetic research
- mostly quantitative
- most closely fits traditional models of ‘scientific method’ in psychology
- hypotheses are formulated, samples of people/animals assessed in some way (eg. structured questionnaire, psychological tests) & numerical data produced is analysed for statistical significance
- nomothetic approaches seek to quantify human behaviour
examples in psychology of nomothetic research
- behaviourist & biological approaches
- eg. skinner studied animals to develop general laws of learning (research looked at 1 aspect of human behaviour in few animals but main aim was to establish general laws)
- eg. sperry’s split-brain research involved repeated testing & was (partly) basis for understanding hemispheric lateralisation
nomothetic & idiographic debate: objective vs. subjective
idea of objectivity at heart of nomothetic approach:
- laws of behaviour only possible if methods of assessment are delivered in standardised & objective way
- ensures true replication happens across all samples of behaviour & removes influence of bias
researchers working within idiographic approach often believe objectivity in psychological research isn’t possible:
- people’s individual experience of their unique context which is important
AO3 +) idiographic approach contributes to nomothetic approach
E:
- idiographic approach uses in-depth qualitative methods of investigation, providing global description of 1 individual which may complement nomothetic by shedding further light on general laws/challenging such laws
- eg. single case could generate hypotheses for further studies (such as HM)
- cases like HM could reveal important insights into normal functioning which could contribute to overall understanding
T: suggests even though focus is on less individuals, the idiographic approach approach could still help form ‘scientific’ laws of behaviour
AO3 -) counterpoint to contribution of idiographic approach
E:
- approach is still narrow/restricted
- meaningful generalisations cannot be made without further examples, as there isn’t an adequate baseline to compare behaviour to
- also, methods associated with approach (eg. case studies) are often least scientific as conclusions regularly rely on subjective inteprretion of researcher, so open to bias
T: suggests difficult to create effective general theories of human theories in complete absence of nomothetic research
AO3 +) scientific credibility of both approaches
E:
- process involved in nomothetic research is similar to those used in natural sciences (eg. establishing objectivity through standardisation, control & statistical testing)
- researchers using idiographic approach also seek to objectify their methods (eg. triangulation is used to increase validity)
- modern qualitative researchers reflect upon own biases & preconceptions as part of research process
T: suggests both approaches raise psychology’s status as a science
AO3 -) nomothetic aproach creates loss of understanding of individual
E:
- approach is preoccupied with general laws, prediction & controls meaning its been accused of ‘losing the whole person’ within psychology
- eg. knowing there’s a 1% lifetime risk of developing Sz tells us little about what life is like for someone who’s been diagnosed
- understanding subjective experience of Sz may prove useful when devising appropriate treatment options (for example)
T: means, in it’s search for generalities, the nomothetic approach may fail to relate to ‘experience’
