Idiographic and Nomothetic Approaches

• Idiographic:

  :( unscientific

  > uses methods, such as case studies and self-reports, which tend to be subjective and open to bias

  > unlike nomothetic approaches, which use objective and empirical methods, such as lab experiments

  > lowers the internal validity of idiographic approaches, which may be less respected by scientists
• Idiographic:

  :) in-depth data

  > focuses on the individual and their unique experience

  > e.g. case study of Clive Wearing gave valuable insight into amnesia and supports that our memory has separate stores (multi-store model)

  > unlike nomothetic approaches, which use large samples so cannot find in-depth data

  > idiographic approaches may be more effective for understanding the reasons behind human behaviour
• :)/( both approaches

  > rather than seeing the approaches as alternatives, it may be better to study human behaviour using both

  > e.g. memory studies into the capacity, coding and duration of the SR, STM and LTM have been carried out to establish general patterns of memory (nomothetic) as well as case studies, such as Clive Wearing (idiographic) which provided in-depth information

  > the goal of modern psychology should be to use both approaches