Idiographic + Nomothetic Approaches Flashcards
Outline the idiographic-nomothetic debate
-centred on 2 opposing approaches
-idiographic suggests psychology should be study of individuals because by getting lots of detailed info about individual , understand behaviour better eg case study
-nomothetic suggests psychology should be study of large/varied groups to generalise about typicality in dif aspects of behaviour ie establishing norms eg lab experiment
-debate has implications for types of research methods used , study in depth or larger groups/discuss averages
Outline the idiographic approach to psychological investigation
-number of p/s is often small/singlem case
-may include family, friends info but focus is on detail
-doesn’t mean generalisations aren’t made , just the aim isn’t to formulate general laws
What type of research is conduced in the idiographic approach
-most is qualitative
-eg research on depression would be based on first-hand accounts from small numbers
-p/s be interviewed in depth , focus may be on particular facet of human behaviour , such as coping with their experience
-data analysed , emergent themes identified
-conclusions may help others in same situation or help mental health professionals determine best practice
What are examples of the idiographic approach in psychology
-humanistic
Eg rogers explained self development , including role of unconditional positive regard derived from clients in therapy
-psychodynamic
Freuds observations of individuals were basis of his explanations of human nature eg case study Little Hans to explain how a phobia might develop
Outline the nomothetic approach to psychological investigation
-aims to study behaviours through development of general laws which could be applied in individual situations like drug therapy
What type of research is conducted in nomothetic approach
-quantitative as closely fits traditional models of ‘scientific method’
-hypotheses formulated, samples of ppl assessed in some way using structured questionnaire or psychological test
-numerical data produced analysed for statistical significance
-nomothetic seeks to quantify behaviour
What are examples of nomothetic approach in psychology
-behaviourist/biological nomothetic even tho use small samples
Eg BF skinner studied animals to develop general laws of learning
Research looked at one aspect of behaviour in few animals, but aim was to establish general laws
-biological may use small samples Eg, such as sperrys split brain involving repeated testing , and was basis for understanding of hemispheric lateralisation
Whats a key difference between idiographic and nomothetic
-ho each relates to subjectivity and objectivity
-idea of objectivity lies at heart of nomothetic approach
-laws of behaviour only possible if methods of assessment re delivered in standardised/objective way
-ensures true replication occurs across samples , removes contaminating influence of bias
In contrast , researchers working within idiographic approach tend not to believe objectivity in research is possible
-its people’s unique context that’s important
What are other examples in psychology that take idiographic approach
-phineas gage
-HM
-Little Albert
Whats a strength of the idiographic approach in that it contributes towards the nomothetic approach
Uses in depth qualitiative methods
Provides global description of 1 individual
May complement nomothetic approach by shedding further light on general laws or challenging laws
Eg a single case may generate hypotheses for further study . Cases like HM (developed severe anterograde amnesia , couldn’t commit new facts to LTM, though STM before surgery to treat epilepsy remained intact) may reveal important insights into normal functioning , contributing to overall understanding
Suggest even tho focus is on fewer individuals, idiographic approach may still help from ‘scientific’ laws of behaviour
Whats the counterpoint to the strength of idiographic contributing to nomothetic
Supporters of idiographic should acknowledge narrow/restricted nature of their work
Meaningfully generalisations cant be made without further examples, as means there’s no adequate baseline to compare behaviour
Also methods associated with idiographic like case studies tend to be least scientific in that conclusions often rely on subjective interpretation of researcher, so open to bias
Suggests that its difficult to build effective general theories of behaviour in complete absence of nomothetic research
Whats a strength of both approaches in that they have scientific credibility
Processes involved in nomothetic research similar to those used in natural sciences, eg establishing objectivity through standardisation , control , statistical testing
However researchers using idiographic also seek to quantify methods
Eg triangulation used where findings using different qualitative methods are compared in means of increasing validity
Plus modern qualitative researchers careful to reflect upon own biases / preconceptions
Suggests that both nomo and idio raise psychology’s status as a science
Whats a limitation of nomothetic being the losing the person
Loss of understanding of individual
Fact that nomothetic is preoccupied with general laws, prediction /control means been accused of ‘losing whole person’
Eg knowing there is 1% lifetime risk of developing Sz tells us little about the life of someone who’s been diagnosed with disorder
Understanding subjective experience of Sz might prove useful when comes to devising treatment options
Means nomothetic fails to relate to ‘experience’ in its search for generalities
