What does eliminativism mean?
Eliminativism is a philosophical doctrine, most prominent in the philosophy of mind, which holds that certain categories we take for granted — especially the mental states of folk psychology, such as beliefs, desires, and pains — do not genuinely exist and should be eliminated from a mature scientific account of the mind. Unlike reductionism, which seeks to explain higher-level phenomena in terms of lower-level ones, eliminativism claims that the categories themselves are radically mistaken, much as alchemy gave way to chemistry. The position was developed forcefully in the late twentieth century by philosophers Paul and Patricia Churchland and remains a provocative minority view. Outside philosophy of mind, the term is occasionally extended to any argument that an accepted concept should be discarded altogether. Because it denies things people instinctively regard as obvious, eliminativism tends to be cited precisely for its shock value, making it a useful word in discussions of radical conceptual revision.
nounThe doctrine or position that certain common-sense mental states, such as beliefs, desires, and pains, do not actually exist and should be eliminated from our scientific understanding of the mind. More broadly, any theory holding that some accepted category or concept is a false construct that ought to be abandoned rather than reduced to something else.
- In philosophy of mind: the view that common-sense mental states such as beliefs, desires, and pains are theoretical constructs with no real referents and should be eliminated from a mature scientific psychology.
- More generally: any position holding that an accepted concept or category is illusory or defective and should be abandoned outright rather than analyzed or reduced.
"Eliminativism challenges us to accept that our familiar talk of beliefs and desires may simply fail to describe how the brain really works."
"Churchland's eliminativism provoked fierce resistance by suggesting that folk psychology might go the way of phlogiston."
"The paper defends a mild eliminativism about emotions, arguing that everyday emotion categories carve nature at no real joints."
Very rare; used only when contrasting distinct versions of the doctrine, e.g. different eliminativisms across domains.
"The volume surveys the various eliminatisms proposed in recent decades, from those targeting emotions to those targeting moral properties."
Some philosophers seriously argue that your beliefs don't exist — not metaphorically, but as a matter of neuroscience — and they have a name for it: eliminativism.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of eliminativism
The word eliminativism derives from the Latin verb 'eliminare', meaning to turn out of doors or expel, formed from 'ex-' (out) and 'limen' (threshold). The English verb 'eliminate' entered the language in the mid-sixteenth century, and the noun 'elimination' followed; 'eliminativism' itself arose much later, in twentieth-century philosophical writing, on the pattern of other '-ism' terms naming doctrines. Cognates sharing the Latin root include 'eliminable' and, more distantly through 'limen', words like 'sublime' and 'preliminary'.
Related word forms
How eliminativism is actually used
A technical term used almost exclusively in academic philosophy and cognitive science; it carries no strong regional variation. The adjective form 'eliminative' (as in 'eliminative materialism') and the agent noun 'eliminativist' are both common. The term often provokes strong reactions because it appears to deny the reality of ordinary experience, so writers frequently qualify it ('moderate', 'radical', 'local').
Easily confused with eliminativism
Eliminationism refers to the advocacy of removing or destroying a group of people, whereas eliminativism is a philosophical doctrine about abandoning certain concepts, especially in philosophy of mind.
Reductionism holds that one kind of thing can be explained in terms of another more basic kind, while eliminativism holds that the category in question does not exist at all and should be dropped entirely.