idiographic vs nomothetic- ISSUES AND DEBATES Flashcards

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1
Q

AO1- idiographic

A
  • individual studied as a unique entity with their own subjective experiences
  • no attempt made to compare them to a larger group, standard or norm

-associated with methods that produce qualitative data

  • aim is to gain an insight into an individual’s unique way of viewing the world
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2
Q

Examples of idiographic approaches

A

HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY=
- interested in documenting the conscious experiences of an individual, rather than creating general laws of behaviour

PSYCHODYNAMIC APPROACH=
- Freud’s work considered idiographic due to use of case study method when detailing the lives of his patients eg Little Hans

—–> however Freud assumed he’d identified universal laws of behaviour which is more akin to the nomothetic approach

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3
Q

AO3- strengths of idiographic approach

A
  • use of qualitative methods provides a more universal understanding of an individual
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4
Q

AO3- limitations of idiographic approach

A
  • can’t generalise findings from one person to anyone else
  • Freud has been criticised of creating universal laws from limited and unrepresentative samples
  • Idiographic techniques are unreliable and unscientific as they are based on the subjective interpretation of the researcher
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5
Q

AO1- what’s the nomothetic approach?

A
  • study large groups of people to identify universal laws of human behaviour
  • provide a ‘benchmark’ against which people can be compared, classified and measured
  • can predict future behaviour
  • associated with scientific methods, like studied involving large groups of people to find similarities between people.
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6
Q

Examples of the nomothetic approach

A

BEHAVIOURISM=
- carried out and replicated lots of studies before establishing their general laws of learning
- studies on rats and pigeons but because they believed learning was universal they applied this to humans.

BIOLOGICAL=
- biological psychologists have carried out many brain scans in order to establish general laws of functioning

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7
Q

AO3- strengths of nomothetic approach

A
  • very scientific
  • personality questionnaires and mental health classification manuals have proved useful in the selection of personnel and the treatment and diagnosis of disorders. PRACTICAL APPLICATION.
  • enables us to predict how people will behave e.g., Zimbardo’s findings about how prisoners and guards react in a prison environment.
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8
Q

AO3- limitations of nomothetic approach

A
  • Predictions can be made about groups, but these may not apply to individuals. Generalisations may be too inaccurate for the individual.
  • gives a superficial understanding of any one person
  • The approach has been accused of losing sight of the ‘whole person.’
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9
Q

If asked to relate idiographic-nomothetic debate to 2 other topics…

A
  • SCHIZOPHRENIA ( classification systems- DSM and ICD)
  • MEMORY ( idiographic eg case of HM, nomothetic studies like divers and rugby players)
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