Idiographic and Nomothetic

• The idiographic-nomothetic debate is centred on two opposing approaches. The idiographic approach suggests that psychology should be the study of individuals because, by obtaining lots of detailed information about that individual or group, we can understand human behaviour better. The nomothetic approach suggests that psychology should be the study of large and varied groups to make generalisations about what is typical in different aspects of human behaviour like establishing norms.
• This debate has implications for the types of research method psychologists use whether we study individuals in depth, or study larger groups and discuss averages. That said, there is also a sense in which these two approaches overlap and both may have their place within a scientific study of the person.
• Nomothetic is the attempts to study human behaviour through the development of universal laws and general principles. These laws provide a benchmark against which people can be measured, classified, compared. Means we can make predictions about how people will behave in given situations. Nomothetic research most closely fits traditional models of the 'scientific method' in psychology.
• Hypotheses are formulated, samples of people or sometimes animals are assessed in some way perhaps via a structured questionnaire or using psychological tests and the numerical data produced is analysed for its statistical significance.
• Nomothetic approaches seek to quantify human behaviour. Examples in psychology The behaviourist and biological approaches are nomothetic even though they sometimes use quite small samples. For example B.F. Skinner studied animals to develop the general laws of learning. His research looked at one aspect of behaviour in a few animals but the main aim was to establish general laws.
• Similarly biological psychology may use a small sample, such as Roger Sperry's split-brain research which involved repeated testing and was, in part, the basis for understanding hemispheric lateralisation.
• Idiographic is an approach to research that focuses on the individual in order to understand behaviour. Study individuals as unique beings, each with their own , subjective experiences, views and values. No attempt to generalise to a wider group. Most idiographic research is qualitative. For instance, research on depression would be based on first-hand accounts from a small number of people a case study.
• Participants would be interviewed in depth and the focus may be on a particular facet of human behaviour, such as how the participants coped with their experience using a fairly unstructured interview. Such data is then analysed and emergent themes are identified.
• Conclusions may help other people going through similar experiences, or more widely, may help mental health professionals determine best practice. Examples in psychology The idiographic approach is most associated with the humanistic and psychodynamic approaches.
• For example Carl Rogers sought to explain the process of self-development including the role of unconditional positive regard. This was derived from in-depth conversations with clients in therapy. Sigmund Freud's careful observations of individuals were the basis of his explanations of human nature, for example the case of Little Hans was used to explain how a phobia might develop.
• A strength of the idiographic approach is that it often forms the basis of nomothetic research, The idiographic approach uses in-depth, qualitative methods to paint a global picture of an individual, which can help to shed light on existing general laws, challenge existing laws. or act as the starting point for further research. For example, research such as the case of Patient HM proved invaluable to shedding light on the idea of different types of long term memory and where they are stored in the brain. This acted as a springboard for further, more nomothetic research into the topic.
• This shows how although the idiographic approach is not inherently scientific, it can have significant contributions to establishing general laws. However, the idiographic approach still lacks usefulness in that meaningful generalisations and laws cannot be created without the use of further nomothetic research. This limits the usefulness of the idiographic approach on its own.
• A strength of both approaches is that they fit with the aims of science. The nomothetic approach lakes many of the same processes as those used in natural sciences, using standardised methods to ensure replicability and objectivity, and controlled environments to ensure validity.
• Whilst the idiographic approach may seem unscientific, qualitative data is often gathered through methods such as triangulation, which increases validity. Modern qualitative researchers are also careful to reflect upon their own biases and preconceptions as part of the research process, known as reflexivity. This shows how both of the approaches fit with the aims of science in one way or another, increasing the scientific credibility of psychology as a discipline.
• A limitation of the nomothetic approach is that it can cause a loss of understanding of the individual experience, which can be inappropriate in some cases. For example, the statistical infrequency definition of abnormality uses averages and standard deviations within a whole population in order to diagnose a person with abnormality.
• This ignores the individual experience. For example, someone scoring within the normal scale for depression may be struggling, but is not diagnosed with depression due to the generalised nature of the diagnostic tool, and therefore do not receive the help that they need.
• This shows how the loss of the individual person when taking a nomothetic approach can be harmful and inappropriate in cases such as the diagnosis of mental disorders. However, general laws from nomothetic research regarding mental disorders tend to form the basis of therapies and treatments such as drug treatments. This shows how nomothetic research is still very important in the healthcare industry, and should not be disregarded.