Thanks Steve, however scientism may be defined, it seems the most common definitions are pretty far from your preferred one. That is clearly not scientism, it is just a way of scientists use the methods of science. Scientism is a belief system in its widely understood use. A belief system that typically denigrates other sources of arriving at truth. I agree with you about other "sciences' co-opting natural sciences, but particularly physics. The book Irreducible Mind has a great explanation of how the remarkable successes (and subsequent funding) of physics led to early psychologists abandoning any interest in the study of consciousness that did not make it into something that could use the successful methods of physics. Hence, behaviorism. An unfortunate direction that has led to much misunderstanding of the human mind and personality.