structuralism
noun
struc·tur·al·ism
ˈstrək-chə-rə-ˌli-zəm 
ˈstrək-shrə-
1
: psychology concerned especially with resolution of the mind into structural elements
2
: structural linguistics
3
: an anthropological movement associated especially with Claude Lévi-Strauss that seeks to analyze social relationships in terms of highly abstract relational structures often expressed in a logical symbolism
4
: a method of analysis (as of a literary text or a political system) that is related to cultural anthropology and that focuses on recurring patterns of thought and behavior
Examples of structuralism in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Back then, much of literary studies was about structuralism, poststructuralism, and deconstructionism.
—
Karl Ove Knausgaard, Harpers Magazine, 29 Apr. 2025
To the contrary, there has been a ceaseless multiplication of rival and largely incompatible sciences of human behavior: stimulus response, sociobiology, rational choice theory, various structuralisms, many attempts at socioneuroscience, and so on.
—Jason Blakely, Harper's Magazine, 10 July 2023
Critics of structuralism demonstrated that this approach did not discern between competitive and anticompetitive outcomes.
—Timothy J. Muris, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2023
The interpretive tendency then became supercharged with the introduction of powerful new philosophical traditions from continental Europe (structuralism, Marxism, psychoanalysis, deconstruction, and so on).
—Evan Kindley, The New York Review of Books, 16 Feb. 2023
The dynamic works, which comprise Herman Miller’s most iconic ads, catalogs and ephemera from 1949 to 1979, feature a range of conceptual styles, from structuralism to modernism, along with a diverse palette.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2021
The Democratic and Republican bases have arrived at structuralism from different directions.
—Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 29 June 2021
This rejection of the legitimacy of the judicial process is rooted in the same neo-Marxist ideology—a race- and identity-based interpretation of structuralism—that holds sway over the minds of much of our ruling class.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 19 Apr. 2021
This mode of structuralism was eventually done in by its all- embracing scope.
—Roger Lewin, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019
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Karl Ove Knausgaard, Harpers Magazine, 29 Apr. 2025
To the contrary, there has been a ceaseless multiplication of rival and largely incompatible sciences of human behavior: stimulus response, sociobiology, rational choice theory, various structuralisms, many attempts at socioneuroscience, and so on.
—Jason Blakely, Harper's Magazine, 10 July 2023
Critics of structuralism demonstrated that this approach did not discern between competitive and anticompetitive outcomes.
—Timothy J. Muris, Fortune, 3 Apr. 2023
The interpretive tendency then became supercharged with the introduction of powerful new philosophical traditions from continental Europe (structuralism, Marxism, psychoanalysis, deconstruction, and so on).
—Evan Kindley, The New York Review of Books, 16 Feb. 2023
The dynamic works, which comprise Herman Miller’s most iconic ads, catalogs and ephemera from 1949 to 1979, feature a range of conceptual styles, from structuralism to modernism, along with a diverse palette.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2021
The Democratic and Republican bases have arrived at structuralism from different directions.
—Osita Nwanevu, The New Republic, 29 June 2021
This rejection of the legitimacy of the judicial process is rooted in the same neo-Marxist ideology—a race- and identity-based interpretation of structuralism—that holds sway over the minds of much of our ruling class.
—Gerard Baker, WSJ, 19 Apr. 2021
This mode of structuralism was eventually done in by its all- embracing scope.
—Roger Lewin, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Structuralism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/structuralism. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
structuralism
noun
struc·tur·al·ism
ˈstrək-chə-rə-ˌliz-əm, ˈstrək-shrə-
: psychology concerned especially with resolution of the mind into structural elements
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