Exemplarism

/ɪɡˈzɛmpləˌɹɪzəm/ noun

Definition

A philosophical or theological doctrine that emphasizes the importance of exemplars or models; the belief that understanding comes through following examples.

Etymology

From 'exemplar' plus the doctrine suffix '-ism.' Emerged in philosophical discourse to name a school of thought about how we learn and understand through imitation of models.

Kelly Says

Exemplarism explains why we still have role models—it's a philosophy suggesting that humans learn by copying examples rather than by abstract reasoning alone, which neuroscience now supports.

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