Case studies & testimonials

Instead, what is important is to understand the fact that Piaget's case studies did not prove anything but, rather, suggested incredibly fruitful areas for developmental psychologists to investigate.
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The goal of experimental design is to structure events so that support of one particular explanation simultoneously disconfims other explanations.
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Case studies and testimonials stand as isolated phenomena. They lack the comparative information necessary to prove that a particular theory or therapy is superior. It is, thus, wrong to cite a testimonial or a case study as support for a particular theory or therapy. Those who do so mislead the public if they do not point out that such evidence is open to a wide range of alternative explanations (emphasis mine). In short, the isolated demonstration of a phenomenon may be higly misleading. This point can be illustrated more specifically by the example of placebo effects.


- 'How To Think Straight About Psychology' by Keith E. Stanovich

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