Showing papers on "Nomothetic and idiographic published in 2005"

Social Cognitive Predictors of Domain and Life Satisfaction: Exploring the Theoretical Precursors of Subjective Well-Being.

Abstract: Central variables of social cognitive theory were adapted to forge an integrative model of well-being, which was designed to offer greater utility for therapeutic and self-directed change efforts than the dominant personality view of well-being. The authors present 2 studies using versions of the social cognitive model to predict domain-specific and overall life satisfaction. In both studies-one nomothetic, the other idiographic in measurement approach-findings indicated that satisfaction in particular life domains is predicted by domain-specific social cognitive variables (e.g., self-efficacy, perceived goal progress, environmental resources). Domain satisfaction in valued life domains also explained unique variance in overall life satisfaction, even after controlling for trait positive affectivity or extraversion. Implications for theory, research, and counseling aimed at well-being promotion and maintenance are discussed.

A Typology of Approaches to Comparative Analysis of Sports Policy

Abstract: This article provides a four-fold typology of comparative sports policy studies: Type 1, Seeking Similarities, is a nomothetic approach seeking law-like generalization; Type 2 is Describing Difference, an ideographic approach seeking to capture the specificity of policy systems; Type 3, Theorizing the Transnational, goes beyond the nation-state as the unit of analysis to fuse global and local levels of explanation; and Type 4, Defining Discourse, seeks to analyze ways in which policy discourse defines the reality of the policy problems it seeks to address. The authors underline the ontological and epistemological assumptions of such approaches that are often only implicit, and they employ selected examples to illustrate the contribution to knowledge of the different approaches.

Qualitative Career Assessment: An Overview and Analysis

Abstract: Qualitative career assessments are theoretically based interventions that are grounded in constructivism. Constructivism is a departure from the traditional logical positive worldview that has influenced the development of many traditional career assessments. A central concept to constructivism is the importance of meaning, which can only be understood in relation to context. Qualitative career assessment is idiographic in nature, and the individual serves as the reference point in both identifying pertinent themes and interpreting the meaning of those events. Furthermore, there is often a focus on social processes and the understanding that one’s view of the world is not static and is concurrently influenced by historical and cultural contexts that are continually changing and developing. Qualitative assessment often is seen as a potentially useful method for attending to issues related to diversity in career assessment. Because the purpose of qualitative assessment often is to co-construct a working nar...

Emotional awareness and psychological needs

Abstract: This study examined whether individual differences in two dimensions of emotional awareness (i.e., clarity of emotions, attention to emotions) are associated with individual differences in idiographic personal needs and the processing of one's psychological needs. Two types of idiographic personal needs were examined (i.e., psychologically minded, self-focused). Need processing was measured in response to nine scenarios designed to activate six different psychological needs (i.e., achievement, friendship, independence, control, respect, physical safety). There was some evidence of emotional awareness being associated with the types of needs people generated. There was strong evidence of attention to, and clarity of, emotions being associated with need processing (i.e., need activation intensity, need activation consistency, need differentiation, need processing style).

Culture does evolve

Abstract: Neo-Darwinian theories of cultural evolution are apt to be criticized on the grounds that they merely borrow from the theory of natural selection concepts that are then metaphorically applied to conventional historical narratives to which they add no more, if anything, than an implicit presupposition of progress from one predetermined stage to the next Such criticisms, of which a particularly forceful example is a recent article in this journal by Fracchia and Lewontin, can however be shown to be seriously misconceived The fundamental process of heritable variation and competitive selection of information affecting phenotype underlies both biological and cultural evolution despite the obvious differences between the mechanisms of information transfer by genetic inheritance and by exosomatic imitation and learning Information transfer is in neither case a metaphor standing for any other thing, and in neither case does change over time proceed in accordance with developmental laws from which the future evolution of either species or cultures could be predicted in advance For all the unresolved questions that remain, neo-Darwinian evolutionary theory has demonstrated the mutual compatibility of idiographic and nomothetic explanation in the study of species and of cultures alike

Case Study Method and Policy Analysis

Abstract: Case studies are a good part of the backbone of policy analysis and research. This chapter illustrates case study methodology with a specific example drawn from the author’s current research on Internet governance.

Sentence completion test for depression (SCD): An idiographic measure of depressive thinking

Abstract: Objectives. This study set out to investigate the reliability and validity of the Sentence Completion Test for Depression (SCD) as a clinical measure. In contrast to questionnaire measures of depressive thinking, respondents finish incomplete sentences using their own words. This elicits idiographic information concurrent with measuring depressive thinking. Method. In Study 1, measures of negative thinking were tested between a depressed group and a non-depressed control group. A preliminary item analysis was conducted and replicated on separate samples in Study 2. Psychometric properties of the test were investigated. In Study 3, idiographic validity and sensitivity to change were explored in a sample of clinical cases with reference to cognitive-behavioural case-formulation. Results. In Study 1, the depressed group produced more negatives and fewer positives, and the SCD demonstrated good content validity, internal consistency and inter-rater reliability. The preliminary short-form had comparable psychometric properties, and these were replicated on new samples in Study 2. Sensitivity and specificity values were above 90% in both studies. In Study 3, idiographic content generated hypotheses about target problems and dysfunctional beliefs within cognitive-behavioural case-formulation, and SCD scores were sensitive to clinical change. Conclusions. The SCD demonstrates good construct validity, internal consistency, inter-rater reliability, sensitivity, and specificity. It offers an idiographic assessment of depression that is complementary to questionnaire measures, particularly by generating hypotheses about target problems and dysfunctional beliefs within a cognitive-behavioural case-formulation. This is achieved without loss to reliability and validity at the nomothetic level.

Idiographic Formulations, Symbols, Narratives, Context and Meaning

Abstract: To locate the place of idiographic, narrative formulations in a psychiatric nosology and to address the problems stemming from the absence of such formulations in ICD-10 and DSM-IV, the author begins with a review of the stated goals of DSM-IV: that it should serve clinical, research, educational and information-management purposes. He argues that there is a conflict between the clinical and research goals of both manuals and that, with their emphasis on categorical diagnoses, criteria sets and statistical reliability, they serve the purposes of the biomedically oriented researcher better than those of the clinician. The latter is focused on the individual patient and tends in his diagnostic assessment toward a narrative fleshing out of the particulars of the patient's life and personality. Clinicians do not work with tight criteria sets but rather with a prototypal or ideal-type approach, and they emphasize individual histories, psychodynamic formulations and other kinds of idiographic accounts. If a psychiatric nosology is to serve as a clinically useful instrument, it will have to allow for such formulations. The author then offers a description and definition of idiographic, narrative formulations, along with remarks on the conceptual background to this approach. He concludes by highlighting the work of the workgroup of the World Psychiatric Association in developing a section of their International Guidelines for Diagnostic Assessment entitled 'Idiographic (personalised) Diagnostic Formulation'.

What the Rorschach Can Contribute to Child Custody and Parenting Time Evaluations

Abstract: SUMMARY Personality assessment can indirectly help custody evalu-ators answer important questions about parental competence and the fit between parents' psychological resources and children's needs. It is preferable to use testing to check hypotheses derived from the case information rather than the reverse. The Rorschach makes it possible to assess implicit motives, coping capacities, and need states, thus complementing and supplementing self-attributed personal characteristics from the MMPI-2 and other self-report data. It also offers idiographic information for individualizing assessments. Concerns about admissibility and charges that the Rorschach “overpathologizes” litigants are addressed, and suggestions are offered for making optimal use of the Rorschach in child custody work.

The psychosocial experiences of partners of people with aphasia : the evolution of an idiographic, qualitative methodology

Abstract: This thesis is concerned with understanding the psychosocial effects of aphasia for partners, and with the outcomes and processes of group programmes of support and conversation training. It comprises three studies, each of which builds upon the other in method and depth. Study One utilised the quantitative, idiographic Personal Questionnaire Rapid Scaling Technique (Mulhall, 1978) to examine the psychosocial issues of 12 partners of people with aphasia (PWA) before and throughout the programmes. Individual statistical analysis suggested that the scores of four partners showed significant positive change as a result of the support programme, and two changed as a result of the conversation training programme. Results were achieved by considerable data reduction, so changes in individual issues could not be determined. Study Two therefore shifted from the quantitative, researcher's perspective to a method able to capture more fully insider perspectives. The Framework Method (Ritchie and Spencer, 1994) was used to analyse semi-structured interview data from the programme participants. This highlighted, within broad themes, varied and interacting factors that influenced participation and psychosocial change: programme content and organisation, individual circumstances, group and personal processes. The predominant focus of Study Two's findings was the process of intervention, leaving the essential question of how partners really experience psychosocial life with PWA unanswered. By taking a further qualitative shift, Study Three answers that question for one woman. An interpretative phenomenological analysis (Smith, 1996) of her in-depth interview suggests her experience was a complicated process of accommodation linked to life pre-stroke and post-stroke. This process featured complex phases labelled as 'rescue mission and hope', 'endurance, loss and hopelessness' and, finally, 'regeneration'. These phases were linked to her changing perception of her relationship with her husband, her role and her self-image. The thesis concludes with a discussion of methodology, theoretical findings and avenues for further research.

Incorporating idiographic approaches into multicultural counseling research and practice

Abstract: Much of multicultural research has been based on normative methodological approaches. In this article, the authors discuss how idiographic approaches can be used to further explore issues that are relevant to multicultural counseling. Case examples are presented to illustrate how this approach can be used to improve understanding regarding the development of racial identity. Muchas de las investigaciones multiculturales se ha basado en enfoques metodologicos normativos. En este articulo, los autores discuten como enfoques de ideograma pueden ser utilizados a explorar aun mas los asuntos que son aconsejar multicultural pertinente. Los ejemplos del caso se presentan para ilustrar como este enfoque se puede utilizar para entender mejor la identidad racial.

Does culture evolve? : Culture does evolve

Abstract: Neo-Darwinian theories of cultural evolution are apt to be criticized on the grounds that they merely borrow from the theory of natural selection concepts that are then metaphorically applied to conventional historical narratives to which they add no more, if anything, than an implicit presupposition of progress from one predetermined stage to the next. Such criticisms, of which a particularly forceful example is a recent article in this journal by Fracchia and Lewontin, can however be shown to be seriously misconceived. The fundamental process of heritable variation and competitive selection of information affecting phenotype underlies both biological and cultural evolution despite the obvious differences between the mechanisms of information transfer by genetic inheritance and by exosomatic imitation and learning. Information transfer is in neither case a metaphor standing for any other thing, and in neither case does change over time proceed in accordance with developmental laws from which the future evolution of either species or cultures could be predicted in advance. For all the unresolved questions that remain, neo-Darwinian evolutionary theory has demonstrated the mutual compatibility of idiographic and nomothetic explanation in the study of species and of cultures alike.

Beyond nomothetic classification of behavioural difficulties: Using Valued Outcomes Analysis to deal with the behaviour problems that occur in the classroom

Abstract: The number of students who are labeled as having some form of behavioural disorder which requires specialized assistance in the regular school setting is growing. Current approaches to working with these students are often based on the standardized application of treatments designed to modify general symptoms rather than specific behaviours. It is noted that this approach to behaviour-change is limited because it does not seek to understand the reasons why particular behaviours are being used by students in particular settings. This paper will present an idiographic framework as an alternative approach to creating meaningful and long-term changes in the behavioural difficulties which occur in the school setting. This approach is based on developing a clear understanding of the purpose and usefulness of difficult student behaviour by investigating how that behaviour assists the student in gaining access to valued outcomes. Of particular significance to this assessment and intervention framework is the incl...

Mapping the Criminal Mind: Idiographic Assessment of Criminal Belief Systems

Abstract: An idiographic procedure designed to assess the belief systems of criminal offenders is described, investigated, and clarified. This measure, the Cognitive Map of Major Belief Systems (CMMBS), assesses the five belief systems (self-view, world-view, past-view, present-view, future-view) held to occupy the higher echelons of human cognition. Modest to moderate test-retest reliability was achieved when 19 inmates, enrolled in one of three drug-counseling groups, completed the CMMBS on two separate occasions, 2 weeks apart. It was also ascertained that the drug treatment specialist who served as therapist for all three groups “blindly” matched the 19 CMMBS records to the inmates who produced them. A case study of one of the 19 participants was used to illustrate how the CMMBS is employed with individual offenders and how belief systems interact with major schematic subnetworks such as attributions, outcome expectancies, efficacy expectancies, goals, values, and thinking styles to create crime-supporting life...

BRIEF REPORTS Emotional Intensity of Idiographic Sad Memories in Depression Predicts Symptom Levels 1 Year Later

Abstract: When cued with generic happy and sad words, depressed individuals have been found to articulate contex-tuallyimpoverishedmemoriesofautobiographicalevents.Althoughthispatternpredictsaworsesymptomaticcourse of disorder in some depressed samples, longitudinal findings with the cue-word paradigm areinconsistent. To address the etiological significance of autobiographical memories outside the cue-wordparadigm, the authors used an idiographic interview in which depressed participants generated memories oftheir happiest and saddest lifetime events. Each memory was coded for detail and emotional intensity. At a1-year follow-up, participants’ levels of depressive symptoms were reassessed. Lower emotional intensity ofsaddest memories predicted higher levels of depressive symptoms at follow-up. Several implications forunderstanding sadness and emotional disclosure in depression are discussed.

Swimmers' idiographic descriptions of intensity and direction of anxiety as measured by the Revised Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2R)

Abstract: Swimmers' idiographic descriptions of intensity and direction of anxiety as measured by the Revised Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2R)

Original Contribution OUTLINES OF AN IDIOGRAPHIC APPROACH TO AN EARLY WARNING SYSTEM IN ENTREPRENEURIAL CRISIS

Abstract: Traditional methods for predicting an entrepreneurial crisis (e.g. Neuronal Nets) are usually based upon evaluating an enterprise’s quantitative data - mainly derived from balance sheets. These methods disregard, however, the effects of psychological influences on the behaviour of the entrepreneur and the stakeholders. Thus they lack important parameters. This contribution will present an approach based upon economic and psychological data for analysing the perceived exposure of an enterprise to a crisis.