idiographic vs nomothetic

• • Nomothetic approach: approach/method that is concerned with developing general laws of behaviour that apply to all people 
  • This is done in a scientific, methodical way using theories, hypotheses that are tested quantitativelyand experiments 
• • idiographic approach: focused on the individual's unique experience, we understand people through studying individual cases 
  • Small number of participants being studied - focusing on their unique experiences, Qualitative data, case studies, unstructured interviews, thematic and content analysis
• Strength of nomothetic approach- General laws are established- helps to generate treatments for certain conditions therefore giving a healthier workforce, contributing to the economy
• Strength of idiographic appraoch- Springboard for further research- e.g- case studies can trigger larger scale studies, such as Clive wearing had an unaffected LTM but a damaged STM- this lead to a deeper understanding of memory