Reductionism: Difference between revisions
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== Definitions == | == Definitions == | ||
''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'' suggests that reductionism is "one of the most used and abused terms in the philosophical lexicon" and suggests a three-part division:<ref name=Ruse>{{cite book |title=The Oxford Companion to Philosophy |author=Michael Ruse |editor=Ted Honderich |isbn=978-0-19-103747-4 |year=2005 |edition=2nd |chapter=Entry for "reductionism" |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=793 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bJFCAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT1884}}</ref> | ''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'' suggests that reductionism is "one of the most used and abused terms in the philosophical lexicon" and suggests a three-part division:<ref name=Ruse>{{cite book |title=The Oxford Companion to Philosophy |author=Michael Ruse |editor=Ted Honderich |isbn=978-0-19-103747-4 |year=2005 |edition=2nd |chapter=Entry for "reductionism" |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=793 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bJFCAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT1884}}</ref> | ||
# '''Ontological reductionism''': a belief that the whole of reality consists of a minimal number of parts. | # '''Ontological reductionism''': a belief that the whole of [[reality]] consists of a minimal number of parts. | ||
# '''Methodological reductionism''': the scientific attempt to provide an explanation in terms of ever-smaller entities. | # '''Methodological reductionism''': the scientific attempt to provide an explanation in terms of ever-smaller entities. | ||
# '''Theory reductionism''': the suggestion that a newer [[theory]] does not replace or absorb an older one, but reduces it to more basic terms. Theory reduction itself is divisible into three parts: translation, derivation, and explanation.<ref>Alyssa Ney. "Reductionism". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. IEP, University of Tennessee.</ref> | # '''Theory reductionism''': the suggestion that a newer [[theory]] does not replace or absorb an older one, but reduces it to more basic terms. Theory reduction itself is divisible into three parts: translation, derivation, and explanation.<ref>Alyssa Ney. "Reductionism". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. IEP, University of Tennessee.</ref> | ||
Latest revision as of 11:05, 19 February 2023
Reductionism is any of several related philosophical ideas regarding the associations between phenomena which can be described in terms of other simpler or more fundamental phenomena.[1] It is also described as an intellectual and philosophical position that interprets a complex system as the sum of its parts.[2]
Definitions
The Oxford Companion to Philosophy suggests that reductionism is "one of the most used and abused terms in the philosophical lexicon" and suggests a three-part division:[3]
- Ontological reductionism: a belief that the whole of reality consists of a minimal number of parts.
- Methodological reductionism: the scientific attempt to provide an explanation in terms of ever-smaller entities.
- Theory reductionism: the suggestion that a newer theory does not replace or absorb an older one, but reduces it to more basic terms. Theory reduction itself is divisible into three parts: translation, derivation, and explanation.[4]
References
- ↑ Webster's Dictionary
- ↑ Kricheldorf, Hans R. (2016). Getting It Right in Science and Medicine: Can Science Progress through Errors? Fallacies and Facts (en) pp. 63. Cham: Springer. ISBN 978-3-319-30386-4
- ↑ Michael Ruse (2005). The Oxford Companion to Philosophy p. 793 Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-103747-4
- ↑ Alyssa Ney. "Reductionism". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. IEP, University of Tennessee.