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abstraction

abstraction Abstraction is the mental process of focusing attention on features of something that matter for a current purpose while recognizing and setting aside features that do not.

Abstraction is the mental process of focusing attention on features of something that matter for a current purpose while recognizing and setting aside features that do not. In thought, it helps a person connect a part or quality of one experience with similar parts or qualities in other experiences, rather than staying with the whole original context.

Also see

Sources

Drafting source: Baldwin Dictionary of Philosophy and Psychology, 1901. 1901 New York Macmillan original; archive index checked 2026-10-18. “Abstraction” (Abstraction).
public-domain-US · Source snapshot SHA-256: 1503e1189bba3f3b17b5256c76f07b09de24de466a87a480be4a1df7b5584c67

These citations identify the drafting sources. This is a candidate definition. It has not yet been read by the two reviewers. Source institutions do not endorse this dictionary.

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PsychTerms (psychterms.org), CC BY 4.0, version 1. “abstraction.” Development preview.

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