| Prinicples | - That everyone is unique
- Behaviour is due to differences
- Looks at differences rather than nomothetic approach |
| Strengths | - Studies many different human behaviours: A + T (baron-cohen), psychopathy (hancock), phobias (freud)...
- Social benefits, improving our understanding of mental disorders and suggesting treatments e.g. Freud talking therapies
- Attempts to answer free will–determinism debate e.g. debate about convicting psychopaths |
| Weaknesses | - Lacks set of defining beliefs about why people behave the way they do
- More disagreement in this area compared to others
- e.g. eyes teset, nomothetic, sees itself as science, little hans, idiographic, does not see itself as scientific
- Socially sensitive, potential harmful use e,g Yerkes’ study - scientific racism |
| Usefulness of the area (1) | - Objectively measures difference through psychometric tests, allows to diagnose disorders
- e.g. B+C made valid test for ToM deficit in adults where previous tests had had a ceiling effect at around ages 8-9 years
- Benefitting society in a positive way
- Increase psychology's reputation, encourage people to participate in future research |
| Usefulness of the area (2) | - Explains complex human behaviours
- Helps remove stigma + discrimination towards specific disorders
- Like B + C looked at autistic adults
+ how these individuals lacked theory of mind which is why they cannot understand certain social situations
-One of the key features of psychology is to help people and psychology is used to diagnose and to treat disorders
-In 1969 Miller from APA said that the purpose of psychology is ‘to promote human wellbeing’ and both of these studies do that.
-The findings have been used to help identify/diagnose a disorder and treat it. Freud not only identified the source of hans phobia (a projection of unconscious anxieties of the oedipus complex onto horses) he was able to treat it so by the time he experienced the plumber's dream the boy was cured. |
