What does selectionist mean?
Selectionist is a specialist noun for someone who puts selection at the centre of a method or explanation. In discussions of evolutionary biology, it most often denotes an advocate of natural selection: someone who regards selective processes as a major explanation for evolutionary change. The term can also describe a practitioner who deliberately selects organisms or traits for breeding, research, or collection. Its connotations are technical and intellectual rather than everyday, and it is not simply a synonym for a person who makes choices. Usage is relatively uncommon, but “selectionist” sounds especially natural in evolutionary theory, genetics, philosophy of biology, and the history of science. Because writers may disagree about what selection can explain and how much explanatory work it should do, the word can also signal allegiance to a particular theoretical programme. It is most useful when discussing natural or artificial selection and the development of Darwinian ideas about evolution.
nounA person who advocates the principle of selection, especially a defender of natural selection in evolutionary biology; more broadly, one who deliberately selects organisms or traits for breeding, research, or collection.
- An advocate of natural selection or of selection as a general explanatory principle.
- A person who deliberately selects organisms or traits for breeding, research, or collection.
"The paper defended a distinctly selectionist account of how new species arise."
"The paper defended a distinctly selectionist account of how new species arise."
"As a practical selectionist, she chose only plants with the desired resistance."
The regular plural is used when referring to multiple advocates or practitioners of selection.
"The selectionists debated whether natural selection alone could account for the pattern."
Evolutionary thought has room for “selectionists” and their rivals: the word names someone who makes selection the centre of the explanation.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does selectionist come from?
Selectionist was formed in English by adding the agent suffix -ist to selection. Selection comes through Latin selectio, meaning “a choosing,” from seligere, “to choose out,” ultimately related to legere, “to gather” or “pick out.” The suffix -ist comes from Greek -istēs and denotes a practitioner, advocate, or follower.
Related word forms
How selectionist is actually used
This is a relatively uncommon, specialist term rather than an everyday word for someone who makes choices. It occurs most naturally in evolutionary biology, genetics, philosophy of science, and discussions of the history of Darwinian theory.
Easily confused with selectionist
A selector simply performs the act of choosing, whereas a selectionist is identified with supporting selection as a method or explanatory theory.