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holism
(redirected from holists)

   Also found in: Medical, Encyclopedia 0.01 sec.
ho·lism  (hlzm)
n.
1. The theory that living matter or reality is made up of organic or unified wholes that are greater than the simple sum of their parts.
2. A holistic investigation or system of treatment.

holist n.

holism [ˈhəʊlɪzəm]
n
1. (Philosophy) any doctrine that a system may have properties over and above those of its parts and their organization
2. (Medicine) the treatment of any subject as a whole integrated system, esp, in medicine, the consideration of the complete person, physically and psychologically, in the treatment of a disease See also alternative medicine
3. (Philosophy) Philosophy one of a number of methodological theses holding that the significance of the parts can only be understood in terms of their contribution to the significance of the whole and that the latter must therefore be epistemologically prior Compare reductionism, atomism [2]
[from holo- + -ism]

holism
the theory that whole entities, as fundamental components of reality, have an existence other than as the mere sum of their parts. Cf. organicism.holist, n.holistic, adj.
See also: Philosophy
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.holism - the theory that the parts of any whole cannot exist and cannot be understood except in their relation to the whole; "holism holds that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts"; "holistic theory has been applied to ecology and language and mental states"
theory - a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world; an organized system of accepted knowledge that applies in a variety of circumstances to explain a specific set of phenomena; "theories can incorporate facts and laws and tested hypotheses"; "true in fact and theory"
organicism - theory that the total organization of an organism rather than the functioning of individual organs is the determinant of life processes
configurationism, Gestalt psychology - (psychology) a theory of psychology that emphasizes the importance of configurational properties
atomist theory, atomistic theory, atomic theory, atomism - (chemistry) any theory in which all matter is composed of tiny discrete finite indivisible indestructible particles; "the ancient Greek philosophers Democritus and Epicurus held atomic theories of the universe"
Translations
holism [ˈhəʊlɪzəm] nholisme m
holism
nHolismus m


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Concluding Comment We end our review in full agreement with Uttal on a fundamental point: Debates between behaviorists and mentalists, between reductionists and nonreductionists, between empiricists and rationalists, and between elementalists and holists (among others) rage on.
Holists typically regard methodological individualism as dependent on an unrealistic abstraction, the atomic individual, a chimerical being who is self-created and not influenced by the social currents that flow around him.
Holists are essentially global learners in that they tend to have a broad focus, concentrating on several aspects of the topic being learned at the same time.
 
 
 
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