APA Dictionary of Psychology

res extensa

Updated on 04/19/2018
the Latin term (literally: “extended thing”) used by René Descartes to refer to the physical realm of matter. By “extended” Descartes meant that material objects have the property of occupying space, in contrast to the mind, which has no spatial dimensions. Compare res cogitans. See Cartesian dualism.
ADVERTISEMENT

Word of the Day

ADVERTISEMENT

Psychology in the News