This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Kearsley, G. P. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Individuality, Individual Differences, and Computer Simulation

Center for Advanced Study in Theoretical Psychology University of Alberta

The nomothetic and idiographic approaches to the study of individual differences and individuality are reviewed. The underlying assumptions of each approach are distinguished and then reconstructed to give eight different conceptual perspectives for the study of individual behavior. It is argued that the traditional nomothetic and idiographic techniques are limited to one or two of these perspectives while computer simulation provides the capability to deal with all of these conceptualizations and hence is a more powerful methodology. Two perspectives in particular are singled out for special consideration in order to demonstrate the value of computer simulation in the study of individual behavior. A number of potential applications of such computer models to educational research are discussed.

Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 36, No. 4, 811-823 (1976)
DOI: 10.1177/001316447603600402


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?