automatism
/ɔːˈtɒmətɪzəm/ noun
Forms automatisms
- noun (uncountable) Automatic or involuntary action.
- noun (uncountable) The power of initiating vital processes from within the cell, organ, or organism, independent of external stimulus.
- noun (uncountable, philosophy) The doctrine that all living beings are entirely controlled by physical or physiological causes, where consciousness is a noncontrolling accessory.
- noun (uncountable, art) A surrealist painting technique whereby one attempts to move the brush, pen etc. without conscious control over it.
- noun (countable, psychology) An action performed subconsciously, without any apparent direction from the mind; a thought which appears spontaneously in one's consciousness.
Synonyms
Etymology
From automat(on) + -ism.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “automatism”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details