operationalismPronunciation: /ɒpəˈreɪʃ(ə)n(ə)lɪz(ə)m/Definition of operationalism noun [mass noun] Philosophy a form of positivism which defines scientific concepts in terms of the operations used to determine or prove them. Derivatives operationalist noun & adjective operationalism in other Oxford dictionaries Definition of operationalism in the US English dictionary