Nomothetic and Idiographic Approaches:Understanding Personality Theory (Coursework Sample)

Mid-Term Assignment
Student's Name
Institutional Affiliation
Mid-Term Assignment
Question#1
The idiography technique emphasizes the individual's subjective and unique experience, while the nomothetic approach examines the numerical and statistical aspects to arrive at universal conclusions. The two-dimensional approach focuses on the individual's perceptions and emotions and collects qualitative data instead of numerical statistics to obtain detailed information about the individual. An analysis of Freud (1909) by Little Hans (a young man frightened by horses because of his father's jealousy) contained 150 pages of notes. Freud spent a lot of time gathering specific information about little Hans, trying to understand why he behaved the way he did (Dickinger & Lalicic, 2015). Humanistic psychologists also use the ideographic technique because they believe that a person's subjective experience is more important than a universal generalization in acquiring human knowledge. Another person who has taken a comprehensive approach and coined the word is Allport (1961). He argued that a cyclographic approach could reveal more about a person's behavior than personality tests, which provide quantitative data.
On the other hand, the nomothetic technique simultaneously examines many people to obtain quantitative data. It seeks to create an explanation of behavior that is universal and universal for entire populations, arguing that qualitative evidence does not provide such generalizations. For example, a biological approach analyzes the common causes of behavior that can lead to drug therapy, which can be applied to anyone. According to "fight or flight" research, this is a typical stress response. On the other hand, Taylor's research suggested the opposite (the women responded with "prejudice and friendship"). Unlike Allport, Eysenck studied personality but took a nomothetic approach. He evaluated a large sample of people and used their data to classify them as "neurotic introverts" or "neurotic extroverts." This method easily and quickly classifies personality as a universal personality test (Beck & Jackson, 2020). One criticism of the humanistic approach, such as the idiographic approach, is the lack of scientific rigor.
Positive psychologists argue that the humane approach lacks evidence-based conclusions, making it unnecessary. Other ideographic procedures are scientific despite this limitation. An example is case studies. Case studies use the scientific method and collect qualitative data. Scientific is another multifaceted approach, but humanitarian is not. Another disadvantage of the multidisciplinary approach is that it is impossible to predict behavior. Such a broad generalization can be helpful in some therapies for mental illness, such as rehabilitation programs. Creating personal resources for everyone is too complicated and time-consuming – it's impossible. On the other hand, Allport argues that the cyclographic technique can lead to generalizations (Dickinger & Lalicic, 2015). Scientists can collect specific information about individuals and then use it to make overall predictions. According to Hall and Lindzey, this suggests that idiographic is nomothetic and that there is no real difference between them. The nomothetic technique has the advantage of allowing the use of large samples to obtain reliable and representative results for humans. It is also scientific so that experiments can be repeated and reliable. But humanitarian psychologists say that the nomothetic approach has forgotten what it means to be human. There is no separate and distinct perspective, and it is assumed that universal laws of behavior apply to everyone (and cultural and gender differences cannot be considered). Allport believed that the only way to predict a person's behavior was to identify them, which the nomothetic technique does not allow.
Question#2
Because the humanistic approach prioritizes self-realization and personal goals, most people are satisfied with the idea of what it means to be human. It focuses more on the positive nature of humanity and the change of free will. It emphasizes the importance of more native and individualized research methods (Beck & Jackson, 2020). Humanism can also be helpful in various professions such as criminology, history, and literature since humanistic thinking has a foundation reflecting everything considered human. Clients feel more comfortable dealing with advisors because person-centered counseling is non-directive. Customers are treated as peers because they don't claim to be experts. This can be unclear for those who do not have the mental capacity to allow clients to think for themselves. Similarly, their customers may be dissatisfied because they do not receive an explanation for their concerns.
Supporters of the humanistic approach believe in decisive rights, while opponents believe in free will. In the result, this claim states that there is only one observable course, which is incompatible with the existence of free will. This approach can be biased and utterly focused on Western culture. Therefore, it encourages people from many cultures to imitate and accept them, even if it is contrary to their values. For example, the teacher's skills in the classroom play a vital role