Karl Jaspers' multiperspectivalism

Abstract

In later editions of his General Psychopathology, Karl Jaspers prescribes many different methods and theoretical points of view for psychopathologists to utilize. Each of these perspectives on the subject matter of psychopathology, however, gives the investigator access to only one dimension of the patient's being. Hence, Jaspers insists that several different perspectives must be employed in order to avoid a one-sided and partial comprehension of the patient and his or her problem. He advocates a multiperspectival approach in psychopathology. Nevertheless, Jaspers remains aware that the patient is a unified whole. This unified whole, however, is not knowable as such, but can rather be approached only under the guidance of an 'idea' of the whole. Jaspers takes the basic notion of 'idea' (Idee) from Kant, but he modifies and uses it for his own purposes. Jaspers' multiperspectivalism may seem to invite charges of relativism because it leaves the psychopathologist to 'pick and choose' any method or theory he or she prefers. This charge is addressed by admitting that there does exist a certain relativism in Jaspers' position in that any one perspective does provide only one approach to the reality of the patient and that other equally useful perspectives could have been chosen. However, each perspective itself can be subjected to test by evidence, and in such tests, claims made from that perspective can be found to be true or false. Helen Longino's theory of scientific knowledge helps support such a thesis.