Naturalism (philosophy): theory that the natural world is all there is

Forms and central features

Philosophers commonly distinguish among several compatible forms of naturalism. Metaphysical or ontological naturalism asserts that only natural entities (matter, energy, physical systems) exist. Methodological naturalism advises that scientific and rational inquiry should proceed without invoking supernatural hypotheses. Epistemic naturalism emphasizes that knowledge is grounded in empirical inquiry and that explanations should be testable and subject to revision.

Typical commitments

• Rejection of supernatural causation such as gods, souls, or magic as explanatory necessities.
• Confidence in empirical evidence and scientific methods to discover facts about the world.
• Preference for naturalistic explanations in philosophy, cognitive science, ethics, and other fields.

History and influence

The word 'naturalism' began to be used in its philosophical sense in the 18th century and grew more prominent alongside the scientific revolutions and Enlightenment critiques of superstition. Over the 19th and 20th centuries, naturalistic perspectives helped shape modern biology, psychology, and the philosophy of mind by prioritizing natural causes and continuity with other sciences. In contemporary debates, naturalism appears both as a background assumption of much scientific practice and as an explicit position defended in metaphysics and epistemology.

Implications and debates

Naturalism has practical and theoretical consequences. It often undercuts traditional supernatural explanations for phenomena and encourages naturalistic accounts of consciousness, morality, and social life. Critics argue that naturalism may overreach when it claims that science can answer every meaningful question (a charge sometimes labeled 'scientism'), or that it cannot account for values, meaning, or first principles. Proponents reply that naturalism offers the most reliable path to tested knowledge and that gaps in current explanation do not imply the presence of the supernatural.

Further resources

For introductions and overviews, see general entries on philosophy, the study of metaphysics, and treatments of nature in philosophical literature. Discussions of how naturalism relates to religion and claims about the supernatural can be found in work on supernatural topics and on concepts such as God. For material on mind and personhood consult sources on souls, and for historical or anthropological perspectives consider resources addressing witchcraft.