ISSUES AND DEBATES -Idiographic and nomothetic approaches (16)

 Idiographic - Focus on individual case to understand bhvr

Nomothetic - Study groups to produce general laws of human behaviour

Idiographic - 

• See person as unique with subjective experiences, motivations and values
• Associated with methods to produce qualitative data e.g. case studies and unstructured questionnaires 
• Aim to gain insight into persons unique way of viewing world

Examples - 

Humanistic approach: Maslow and Rogers 

See selves as anti scientific 

Concerned about unique experience not general laws

Psychodynamic approach: Freud

Case study but did apply universal laws of bhvr so is more nomothetic

Nomothetic - 

• Aim to produce general laws of human bhvr
• Uses methods to produce quantitative data e.g Experiments
• Study large sample of people representtive of population
• Establish similarities and differences
• Usually use random sampling

Examples-  

Usually incorporate…