interactionism

[ in-ter-ak-shuh-niz-uhm ]

noun

, Philosophy.

1. a theory that the mind and the body may each affect the other.

interactionism

/ ˌɪntərˈækʃəˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. philosophy the dualistic doctrine that holds that mind and body have a causal effect upon one another, as when pricking one's finger (physical) causes pain (mental), or an embarrassing memory (mental) causes one to blush (physical) Compare parallelism

Other Words From

• inter·action·ist noun adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of interactionism¹

First recorded in 1900–05; interaction + -ism

Example Sentences

Since intelligence or consciousness must be provided for somehow, we are forced back upon either interactionism or else epiphenomenalism, more or less disguised under a euphonious name, such as psycho-physical parallelism or the double-aspect theory.

From Project Gutenberg

In the present day the two theories of the relation of mind and body that divide the field between them and stand opposed to each other are interactionism and parallelism.

From Project Gutenberg

Some psychologists incline to be parallelists, some are warm advocates of interactionism.

From Project Gutenberg

The parallelist, for it is he who opposes interactionism, insists that we must not forget that mental phenomena do not belong to the same order as physical phenomena.

From Project Gutenberg