Who cares what you accurately believe?

Journal article

Littlejohn, Clayton. (2015). Who cares what you accurately believe? Philosophical Perspectives. 29(1), pp. 217-248. https://doi.org/10.1111/phpe.12064
AuthorsLittlejohn, Clayton
Abstract

[Extract] In this paper, I want to look at a consequentialist approach to epistemic norms because it seems to give us the resources needed to solve our two problems about rational belief. Starting from the assumption that accuracy or truth is an epistemic good that calls for promotion, we can use norms from decision-theory to vindicate probabilism.4 It seems we can explain why rational beliefs form pretty patterns without assigning any independent value to these beliefs’ aesthetic properties. Moreover, we can use these same resources to explain why rational believers ought to tolerate certain kinds of inconsistency.5 If the accuracy-first framework really does help us get a handle on these problems, it would have an undeniable appeal.

Year2015
JournalPhilosophical Perspectives
Journal citation29 (1), pp. 217-248
PublisherBlackwell Publishing
ISSN1520-8583
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1111/phpe.12064
Scopus EID2-s2.0-84964335220
Page range217-248
Publisher's version
License
All rights reserved
File Access Level
Controlled
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online22 Apr 2016
Publication process dates
Deposited24 Oct 2022
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