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Updated: May 11, 2026

Perspectives on Neuroscience
Published on: July 31, 2007
[Scientism. On the history of a difficult concept]
1Centre Marc Bloch, Friedrichstr. 191, D-10117, Berlin, Germany, peter.schoettler@ihtp.cnrs.fr.
Abstract:
Today "scientism" is a pejorative concept in every language. But isn't that just a projection made in order to exploit the fear of "science"? The article develops the argument that scientism is a historical current which can be analyzed in a concrete way. It shows that the word goes back to the 19(th) century and got its negative emphasis when "scientific" spiritism on the one hand and Catholicism on the other were struggling against the "exaggerated" claims of natural science.
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