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mentalism

[ men-tl-iz-uhm ]
/ ˈmɛn tlˌɪz əm /
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noun
the doctrine that objects of knowledge have no existence except in the mind of the perceiver.
the doctrine that human conduct reflects the operation of a nonmaterial principle.
any psychological theory that accepts as a proper subject of study the mental basis for human behavior.
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Compare behaviorism.

Origin of mentalism

First recorded in 1870–75; mental1 + -ism

OTHER WORDS FROM mentalism

men·tal·is·tic, adjectivemen·tal·is·ti·cal·ly, adverb

Words nearby mentalism

mental healing, mental health, mental home, mental illness, mental impairment, mentalism, mentalist, mentality, mental lexicon, mentally, mentally ill
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use mentalism in a sentence

  • This brain-machine mentalism works by asking people to have a specific thought or cognitive experience over and over while inside an fMRI machine.

    Can Machines Control Our Brains?|R. Douglas Fields|May 17, 2021|Quanta Magazine

  • There is but a slender difference between barbarity and senti-mentalism.

    American Sketches|Charles Whibley

British Dictionary definitions for mentalism

mentalism
/ (ˈmɛntəˌlɪzəm) /
noun
philosophy the doctrine that mind is the fundamental reality and that objects of knowledge exist only as aspects of the subject's consciousnessCompare physicalism, idealism (def. 3) See also monism (def. 1), materialism (def. 2)

Derived forms of mentalism

mentalist, nounmentalistic, adjectivementalistically, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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