Idiographic nomothetic

• What is the idiographic nomothetic approach?

  The idiographic/nomothetic debate is concerned with weather we understand behaviour better through focusing on the individual case (idiographic) or developing general principles and laws that universally generalise (nomothetic). 
• how does idiographic study behaviour?

  The idiographic approach tends to favour qualitative methods e.g. case studies and interviews, using small sample sizes. Examples of this include Freuds case study of little hans to investigate the Oedipus complex, and the cases studies of HM and KF to investigate the different types of LTM. 
• What are the strengths of idiographic?

  One strength of this approach is that it provides a comprehensive, global understanding of the individual which in turn can lead to better insight into to inform therapies such as psychotherapy or Roger’s client-centred approach. This is because qualitative data produces an in-depth account of the individual, further leading to the support of existing theories or challenge general laws, improving psychology as a whole. 
• what are the weaknesses of idiographic?

  lacks scientific rigour

  researcher bias + reduced reliability
• elaborate on lack of scientific rigour as a weakness for idiographic?

  However, the idiographic approach offers a narrow and restrictived perspective as theories developed from case studies and (unstructured) interviews lack scientific rigour because they rely heavily on individual and subjective interpretation. 
• elaborate on researcher bias and reliability as a weakness for idiographic?

  This means conclusions are open to researcher bias, therefore, the reliability of the findings and the extent to which they can be generalised to other individuals is reduced. For example, the humanism widely uses the idiographic approach but is still viewed by many as a set of rather loose, abstract concepts, due to a lack of empirical evidence as well as being specific to the individual. This means that the idiographic approach does not improve the scientific credibility of psychology.
• how does nomothetic study behaviour?

  The nomothetic approach tends to favour quantitiative methods e.g. laboratory experiments and controlled observations, using large sample sizes so as to generate robust quantitative data which is able to withstand statistical analysis. Examples of this include the cognitive and biological approaches which utilise EEGs and PET scans to draw inferences about the brain with a high degree of control.
• Strength of nomothetic?

  standards of behaviour have been Created

  lab conditions
• elaborate on standards of behaviour being created as a strength of nomothetic?

  One strength of the nomothetic approach is that its focus on objectively collecting reliable data has led to certain ‘norms’ or standards of behaviour to be established, such as the average IQ score being 100. These norms act as a good baseline comparison for intellectual abilities and mental disorders, increasing the likely hood of mental illnesses being diagnosed and therefore helped. 
• elaborate on lab conditions as a strength for nomothetic?

  Furthermore, the use of laboratory conditions, provide a high degree of control over extraneous variables ensuring they cannot confound the results allowing a cause and effect relationship to be established. Additionally, the standardisation of variables means they can be measured accurately, increasing the internal reliability which in turn increases the external reliability as it can be easily replicated.
• what are the weaknesses of nomothetic?

  ignores individual differences

  limited sample size

  lacks ecological validity
• elaborate on individual differences as a weakness for nomothetic?

  However, the nomothetic approach cannot explain the subjective experience of the individual which may actually be more important and useful than a statistically significant result
• elaborate on limited sample size as a weakness for nomothetic?

  experiment samples are not always diverse enough from to generate universal laws of behaviour. For example, Milgram’s (1963) obedience study used only 40 (American male), to produce a comprehensive explanation of behaviour a more diverse sample size was needed,  e.g. gender, age, and culture to ensure the results can be generalised to society as a whole rather than American male students for example America is an individualist country (where conformity is less common) so results could differ in collectivist cultures like Asia. 
• elaborate on ecological validity as a weakness of nomothetic?

  Furthermore , data collected may lack ecological validity as artificial conditions do not reflect real world scenarios questioning the generalisability of the results even more.