Final answer:
Individuals may step away from psychology for various reasons such as disillusionment with academia or a pursuit of intellectual interests outside of formal education, as seen in Chris's case, or due to the frustration with ambiguous experimental data leading to fraudulent activities, as in Diederik Stapel's situation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The decision to step away from psychology can be attributed to a variety of personal and professional factors, as described by individuals who have distanced themselves from the field. For instance, one individual may abandon psychology due to disillusionment with the educational system, preferring to pursue intellectual interests independently. In a case like Chris, he left school and took blue-collar jobs while still maintaining an interest in intellectual pursuits like his 'Cognitive Theoretic Model of the Universe' outside the formal educational framework. Alternatively, in the case of Diederik Stapel, a lack of clear data in social psychology led to a craving for order and beauty, prompting fabrication of results to achieve aesthetic satisfaction over truth. This eventually resulted in a large-scale academic fraud, tainting his career and reputation.