ABSTRACT
When scientists speak of determinism, they usually mean causal determinism, which simply means that every event stands in some causal relationship to other events. When social scientists use the term determinism they are typically thinking of biological determinism; cultural determinism is apparently acceptable. Biological determinism is seen as implying that social behavior is a direct outcome of genetic programming absent any influence from the environment. Determinism and essentialism are terms of opprobrium used mostly by strong social constructionists, but reductionism tends to be used pejoratively by most social scientists. Essentialism is a concept caught up in such arcane metaphysics that neither defenders nor opponents seem quite sure what they are defending or attacking. Andrew Sayer, a philosopher/sociologist who believes that "moderate essentialism" is necessary for explanation and critical for social science, notes that critics not only assert that essentialism involves essences, but that these essences are "unchanging eternal ones".
