Beyond Dichotomy—Towards Creative Synthesis

Abstract

There are two ways for overcoming limitations of methods used in psychology, as Toomela (Integr. Physiol. Behav. Sci. doi:10.1007/s12124-007-9004-0, 2007) points out. These are inventing new methods of research, and looking back into the history of methodological thought for new ideas. Though he limited the former as if it is a quantitative area and he declared to take the latter path, his paper actually advocates the need to create new methodology for understanding the human psyche through historical approach. We discuss problems of sampling and generalization in that context, and suggest a new way to creative synthesis through elaboration of qualitative methodologies. To us this direction constitutes an updated version of the German-Austrian methodology exactly as Toomela suggests.

Individual personality is best understood as process, not structure: A Confucian-inspired perspective

“…These fit well with a process-oriented perspective, with the aim of understanding individuals in their varied relational contexts. In a similar vein, Sato, Watanabe, and Omi (2007) argued that ''life experience is the major alternative important object of psychology'' (p. 56) and advocated for a more holistic approach to studying persons.…”

“…This point of view complements contemporary empirical research on the interaction of persons and situations (Fleeson, 2004) and harks back to the thinking of Dewey and Mead. It also reflects the ecology of personal life experiencing (Sato, Watanabe, & Omi, 2007).…”

“…These fit well with a process-oriented perspective, with the aim of understanding individuals in their varied relational contexts. In a similar vein, Sato, Watanabe, and Omi (2007) argued that “life experience is the major alternative important object of psychology” (p. 56) and advocated for a more holistic approach to studying persons. In so doing, individual persons would not be disembedded from their historical and social contexts, as is often the case in research that studies large numbers of persons and emphasizes the comparison of group averages.…”

Connecting Theory, Research, and Practice in the Psychology of Creativity: An Introduction to a Special Issue

“…Their selfless contributions have enriched the understanding of the essence of knowing and seeing life phenomena (e.g., birth, death, old age, separation, and love). Rising above any debate of limitations of one method of inquiry or a theoretical orientation, Sato, Watanabe, and Omi () for instance suggested the trajectory equifinality model to study human life experience which functions as an open system and which calls for unique models for every different situation, setting, developmental phase, historical period, and so on. Our effort in making inquiry into life is preliminary and temporary.…”

A construção cultural de significados sobre adoção: um processo semiótico

“…A Psicologia Cultural é pautada na realidade social do dia a dia das pessoas em contextos variados, considerando sempre a historicidade dos fenômenos psicológicos. Essa abordagem valoriza a construção de significados das experiências de vida (Sato, Watanabe, & Omi, 2007), pelas pessoas, em contexto social e histórico (Bruner, 1997), pela mediação semiótica (Vigotsky, 2007) e num tempo irreversível (Lyra, 2006;Valsiner, 2002), isto é, o tempo nunca repete um acontecimento vivido.…”