associational
Pertaining to connections
Associational describes things relating to or based on association—the forming of connections or the act of joining together.
It appears in two main contexts: psychology and sociology.
In psychology, associational refers to mental connections between ideas or memories: associational learning, associational thinking.
In sociology, it describes things pertaining to organizations or groups: associational life, associational membership.
The word is technical and formal, rarely used outside academic writing.
Mental reasoning process
- memoryMind's retention capacity
- recallMemory retrieval act
- linkingForming a connection
- connectionA joining or relation
pattern · recognition · retrieval · encoding · priming · network · semantic · relational
Joined to another
- linkedFastened to another
- affiliatedFormally linked or connected
- relatedConnected by blood or nature
- correlatedMutually related statistically
corresponding · allied · coupled · tied · joined · grouped · partnered · networked
Generating many ideas freely
- ideationForming mental concepts
- divergentDeviating from the norm
- freeformUnconstrained by structure
- generativeAble to produce or create
spontaneous · intuitive · imaginative · lateral · wordplay · stream-of-consciousness · inspiration · riffing
thinking
Mental reasoning process
connection · pattern · recognition · retrieval · encoding · priming · network · semantic · relational · conceptual
connected
Joined to another
- linkedFastened to another
- affiliatedFormally linked or connected
- relatedConnected by blood or nature
correlated · corresponding · allied · coupled · tied · joined · grouped · partnered · networked · bonded
brainstorming
Generating many ideas freely
generative · spontaneous · intuitive · imaginative · lateral · wordplay · stream-of-consciousness · inspiration · riffing · improvisation
associationalindividual
One separate human being
solitary · individualistic · isolated · atomistic · unaffiliated
associationaldirect
Undeviating or to guide
causal · inherent · logical · intrinsic · systematic
associationaldissociational
Relating to psychological splitting
unconnected · disaffiliated · disconnected · unrelated · separate
- freedom of associationRight to join groups
- word associationLinking concepts spontaneously
- homeowners associationResidential community management organization
- professional associationsGroups organized by occupation
- free associationUnfiltered verbal thought flow
- community associationsOrganizations managing shared property
association, associations, disassociation, nonassociation, reassociation