determinism — English Dictionary

Noun

1. The doctrine that all actions are determined by the current state and immutable laws of the universe, with no possibility of choice.

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

   Synonyms

   fatalism

   Antonyms

   indeterminism

   Examples

   More examples (2)

   In 1903 there appeared Problems of Idealism, a collection of essays many of whose authors had recently been Marxists, but which condemned Marxism and materialism for their moral nihilism, contempt of personality, determinism, and fanatical pursuit of social values regardless of the individuals who made up society.

   Pereboom’s book presents probably the best available argument for hard incompatibilism (the view that free will is not compatible with causal determinism), and his defence of the sourcehood view is just part of this overall argument.

2. The property of having behavior determined only by initial state and input.

   Usage

   • Countable
   • Uncountable

   Antonyms

   indeterminism

Noun

1. (philosophy) a philosophical theory holding that all events are inevitable consequences of antecedent sufficient causes; often understood as denying the possibility of free will

   Broader terms

   philosophical doctrinephilosophical theory