Examining the Analytical Approach

Summary

The ongoing debate between the ‘classicists’ and the ‘neo-classicists’ within homeopathy can be approached by actively examining models in ‘cognitive psychology’ that were designed to understand how ‘experts’ make decisions within the confines of a normal working day. In other words, how ‘experienced homeopaths’ under the pressures of a normal working day faced with inadequate or ambiguous information were able to make find ‘the correct remedy’. The article discusses what qualifies ‘expertise’ and the essential problems that ‘analyzing a case’ presents when faced with years of expertise.

Key words

Pattern recognition - Expertise - Analysis - Intuition - Recognition model.

References

• 1 Gray J. Al Qaeda and What it Means to be Modern. London; Faber & Faber 2003
• 2 Klein G. Source of Power. Cambridge, Massachusetts; MIT Press 1998
• 3 Soelberg P O. Unprogrammed decision making.  Industrial Management Review. 1967;  8 19-29
• 4 Davis-Floyd R, Sven Arvidson (eds) P. Intuition: the inside story. Oxford; Routledge 1997
• 5 Pennington N, Hastie R. A theory of explanation-based decision making. Klein G, Orasanu J, Calderwood R, and Zsambok CE Decision Making in Action: Models and Methods. Norwood, NJ; Ablex 1993
• 6 Bechara A, Damasio H, Tranel D, Damasio A R. Deciding advantageously before knowing the advantageous strategy.  Science. 1984;  275 1293-1295
• 7 Arnold H. Imagination and the Meaningful Brain Model. Cambridge; MIT Press 2003
• 8 Lakoff G, Johnson M. Metaphors we Live by. Chicago, Ill; University of Chicago Press 1980
• 9 Johnson M. The Body in the Mind. Chicago, Ill; University of Chicago Press 1987