Encyclopedia entry
Idiographic/Nomothetic
The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology
01 Aug 2016
Abstract
The terms “idiographic” and “nomothetic” mark a distinction that continues to underlie the major explanatory divide that differentiates qualitative and quantitative methods in sociology. The distinction has to do with how human action is better explained: by reference to the sociohistorical particularities motivating actors in a specific situation (i.e., idiographically) or by general laws that hold for all actors similarly situated (i.e., nomothetically).
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Details
- Title
- Idiographic/Nomothetic
- Creators
- Douglas Porpora - Drexel University
- Contributors
- George Ritzer (Editor)
- Publication Details
- The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology
- Publisher
- John Wiley & Sons, Ltd; Oxford, UK
- Number of pages
- 2
- Resource Type
- Encyclopedia entry
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Communication
- Other Identifier
- 991021863478004721