The idea that ``the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.'' Holism is credible on the basis of emergence alone, since reductionism and bottom-up descriptions of nature often fail to predict complex higher-level patterns. See also top-down.
The belief that wholes determine the design, function, and health of their parts rather than the other way around.
the philosophical view that no complex entity can be considered to be only the sum of its parts; as a principle of anthropology, the assumption that any given aspect of human life is to be studied with an eye to its relation to other aspects of human life.
A theory that the universe and especially living nature is correctly seen in terms of interacting wholes (as of living organisms) that are more than the mere sum of elementary particles.
the theory that the parts of any whole cannot exist and cannot be understood except in their relation to the whole; "holism holds that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts"; "holistic theory has been applied to ecology and language and mental states"
(n.) The view that an organic or integrated whole has an independent reality which cannot be understood simply through an understanding of its parts.
the view that social phenomena are integrated into single wholes (such as a common culture). Holism opposes the mechanistic view that analyses events by breaking them down into constituent parts. It suggests that the essence of the whole is present in all parts and hence often places importance on mundane events, which are seen as microcosms of the whole.
The doctrine that wholes are more than the sum of their parts (cf. reductionism).
The idea that the whole brain mediates all functions (in contrast to the idea of localization of function).
Generally regarded as a word from HOLOS - Greek for whole. In Complementary Medicine the whole is seen as more than the sum of the parts and describes treatments which are focused on the physical, mental, emotions, vital force, Spirit and Soul.
An approach to treatment that includes treating the whole person, not just the affected area.
The philosophy of teaching reading that values preservation of the whole word over segmentation of the word or other language entities into parts or synthesis of the whole from the parts.
The total of a system is greater than the sum of its parts. In practice it attempts to get more from less. Often applied in the working world by dull bosses with insufficient thought and training, resulting in stressful and unnecessary overload of personnel.
We honor the mind, body, heart, and spirit in each individual, knowing the need to balance and blend all these elements. In our programming, we encourage authenticity as a means to build trust, and as essential to the growth and development of the whole.
Holism (from holos, a Greek word meaning all, entire, total) is the idea that all the properties of a given system (biological, chemical, social, economic, mental, linguistic, etc.) cannot be determined or explained by the sum of its component parts alone. Instead, the system as a whole determines in an important way how the parts behave.
