noninteractionist

Noninteractionist is a term used across multiple academic disciplines to describe theories or approaches that reject or downplay the necessity of causal interaction between components or domains in order to explain phenomena. It is typically contrasted with interactionist or interventionist positions that emphasize direct causal influence.

In philosophy, noninteractionist accounts are encountered especially in the philosophy of mind. These positions hold that mental states may not causally affect physical processes, or that causal interaction is not essential to understanding mental phenomena. For example, some forms of epiphenomenalism posit that mental states are byproducts of physical brain states and do not exert causal power over behavior.

In theology and philosophy of religion, non-interventionist or noninteractionist theories of divine action argue that God ordinarily operates without disrupting natural processes or suspending laws of nature. Proponents maintain that divine agency can be compatible with a world governed by consistent natural law, with action conceived in ways that do not require ongoing episodes of intervention.

In the social sciences, noninteractionist approaches emphasize macro-level structures, institutions, and norms rather than micro-level interpersonal interactions. These perspectives may focus on how social orders and frameworks shape behavior and outcomes without invoking detailed analyses of individual interactions, contrasting with interactionist or symbolic interactionist viewpoints.

Critics of noninteractionist positions often point to challenges in explaining empirical correlations and in accounting for intuitive causal intuitions. Debates typically center on the appropriate level of analysis and the sufficiency of noncausal explanations for complex phenomena.

See also: interactionism, epiphenomenalism, structuralism, macro-sociology, and philosophies of mind.