MEANING
Operating according to rules under which the same specified conditions yield the same outcome.
Use it for
model assumptions; predictable rule-based outcomes; critiques of inevitabilityShow whether variation comes from chance or from conditions the model specifies.
Words that belong together
- deterministic model
- deterministic process
- deterministic account
On the page
The deterministic model gives the same output every time its inputs are unchanged.
A deterministic account of class mobility leaves little room for individual variation.
Complex behavior can arise from simple deterministic rules.
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Opposite meanings
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Word forms
- Base
- deterministic
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Usage notes
Primary category: academic. In a model, deterministic contrasts with probabilistic or stochastic. Socially deterministic explanations can overstate inevitability; complexity alone does not make a process random. Normally non-gradable in this sense; comparison requires a specific contextual scale. Derived family (not inflections): determinism, deterministically.
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