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In sociology, the idiographic approach refers to a study perspective that consists of analyzing particular or specific elements . On the other hand, the nomothetic approach studies elements that allow the elaboration of more universal or general laws . Microsociology and macrosociology are examples of the idiographic approach and the nomothetic approach in sociology.
The idiographic approach and the nomothetic approach in science
Idiographic and nomothetic research methods are two different approaches that allow observing and evaluating different individuals, phenomena, circumstances, and events. Each of these approaches enables a different way of studying, including different tools and features. Likewise, the combination of both approaches facilitates a more comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the object of study.
Origin of the idiographic and nomothetic approaches
The idiographic and nomothetic concepts were introduced by the German philosopher Wilhelm Windelband (1848-1915) in the 19th century.
Windelband belonged to the neo-Kantian philosophical movement, which took up the interest of Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), one of the most important German philosophers of the 18th century, in the study of science and knowledge.
Windelband stood out for his contributions in the branch of philosophy that studies and analyzes scientific knowledge, epistemology. One of his works was the classification of sciences, and he considered the natural sciences as nomothetic and the social sciences as idiographic.
Other German philosophers also made contributions regarding Windelband’s concepts of idiographic and nomothetic. For example:
- Heinrich Rickert (1863-1936) defined these methods as “individualizing” and “generalizing”, respectively. The idiographic or individualizing method considers a particular case as part of a larger whole. In contrast, the nomothetic or generalizing method leaves individuality aside and focuses on general aspects.
- Max Ernst Mayer (1875-1823) described the idiographic as “what once was” and the nomothetic as “what always is”.
- Wilhelm Kamlah (1905-1976) defined the idiographic approach as particular statements; and to the nomothetic approach as universal statements. He also considered both approaches empirical. In addition, Kamlah disagreed with Windelband’s classification of sciences, since he considered that each science could have these two approaches.
what does idiographic mean
Both “idiographic” and “nomothetic” are words used in the scientific field.
The term “idiographic” derives from the Greek idios , which means “own”, “particular”; and from the Greek word graphikós and the Latin term graphicus, which means “to draw”, “to write”, “to represent”, “to describe”. Therefore, idiographic is something that describes or represents particular, singular or specific facts.
Generally, the method or approach that focuses on a particular case, event or phenomenon is known as idiographic, that is, on the comprehensive analysis of specific, unique objects, in a given time and space, based on qualitative data .
The idiographic approach seeks to obtain specific meanings and does not usually produce information that allows generalizations to be made.
What does nomothetic mean?
The term nomothetic derives from the Latin nomotheticus , and this in turn from the Greek word nomothetikós, which means “legislative” . This word is formed by the Greek prefix nomos , which means “law” and thetikós , which means “’to build”, “to elaborate”, “that can be formed”.
Therefore, nomothetic is something that allows to state laws. The term nomothetic refers to the study of issues that allow the enunciation of principles, laws or rules that can be applied in a general way.
In science, the nomothetic approach is a method that seeks to make general statements that have a broader scope or represent broad patterns. It is characterized by including quantitative data.
In fact, Windelband defined the approach that produces knowledge and seeks to make large-scale generalizations as nomothetic. From a nomothetic perspective, it is possible to carry out detailed and systemic observation and experimentation to obtain results that can be widely applied outside the field of study. This is common in the natural sciences and is seen as the goal of the scientific approach in general.
The combination of the idiographic and nomothetic approaches is known as “idiothetic” and is a method that takes both perspectives into account.
Application of the idiographic and nomothetic approaches in sociology
Sociology is a science that is in charge of the study of human societies, their behavior and the different phenomena that occur in them. The application of the idiographic and nomothetic approaches in sociology is essential, since it allows sociologists to use different perspectives and combine them to understand society more fully. In fact, one of the fathers of sociology, the German sociologist Max Weber (1864-1920) used the nomothetic approach in his work, mainly for the creation of types and concepts to function as general rules.
Difference Between Idiographic and Nomothetic Approaches in Sociology
The main differences between the idiographic and nomothetic approaches lie in the object of study and the scope and methods of investigation.
For example, the idiographic approach tries to find out a large amount of detailed information about a more limited object of study and on a smaller scale. You could say that this is an intensive approach. Unlike the idiographic approach, the nomothetic approach is extensive, trying to understand large-scale social patterns, issues, and problems in order to make generalizations.
Another important difference between the two approaches is the methods used in the research. An idiographic approach involves qualitative methods, including observation, study focus groups, and interviews. Instead, the nomothetic approach incorporates quantitative methods, such as mass surveys, demographic data, and statistical analysis, among others.
Microsociology and macrosociology
The most evident example of the idiographic and nomothetic approaches in sociology can be seen in two branches of this science: micro and macrosociology:
- Microsociology , whose prefix means “small,” generally employs an idiographic approach to its investigations, because it studies people, the nature of everyday social interactions, and individual events, on a small scale.
- Macrosociology , whose prefix means “big”, is associated with a nomothetic approach. That is, it studies populations, their patterns, trends, structures and social systems on a large scale, to develop principles or rules that can be applied generally.
Most sociologists hold that the best sociological research will be idiothetic, that is, one that combines nomothetic and idiographic approaches, and quantitative and qualitative methods. Currently, sociology usually uses these two approaches to, in this way, study individual processes and their context, enabling a more complete and detailed analysis, both at the micro and macro level.
For example, if you want to carry out research on the effects of discrimination on a minority of the population of a country, it would be convenient to adopt a nomothetic approach, collecting statistical information to study the number of disputes, complaints or claims for discrimination in that community. . At the same time, it would also be important to take into account the idiographic approach to understand what the reality of this minority is like, how they experience discrimination and what consequences they face in everyday life.
