2019 Volume 39 Issue 3 Pages 284-287
Numerous group studies have been conducted on neuropsychological research methods. In such investigations, patient categories such as aphasia types are averaged and compared as units. In contrast, cognitive neuropsychological research methodology has traditionally placed emphasis on single case studies. The latter approach focuses on the particulars of a distinct case, and it has been thought that this technique can identify the disorder mechanisms of particular occurrences of a condition. Congruently, research in this field in Japan is also often based on single case studies. However, reports from case series investigations conducted overseas have increased over the last decade. The present paper intends to perform a detailed survey of cases of different types and severity and to identify each case within the distribution of symptoms. Case series studies from overseas are introduced in combination with domestic case histories, and the paper contends that these methods yield more interesting findings on the relationship between semantic disorder and surface dyslexia and on the relationship between phonological disorder and non-word repetition. Additionally, the advantages of amalgamating the use of the single case study method with case series studies are elucidated.
