The logic of probabilistic knowledge

Philosophical Studies 177 (6):1703-1725 (2020)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Sarah Moss’ thesis that we have probabilistic knowledge is from some perspectives unsurprising and from other perspectives hard to make sense of. The thesis is potentially transformative, but not yet elaborated in sufficient detail for epistemologists. This paper interprets Mossean probabilistic knowledge in a suitably-modified Kripke framework, thus filling in key details. It argues that probabilistic knowledge looks natural and plausible when so interpreted, and shows how the most pressing challenges to the thesis can be overcome. Most importantly, probabilistic knowledge can satisfy factivity in the framework, though we are not forced to accept a specific account of probabilistic “facts”. The framework also reflects Moss’ claim that old-fashioned propositional knowledge is just a limiting case of probabilistic knowledge, and all knowledge is fundamentally probabilistic. Finally, Moss endorses a failure of contraposition: for example, p implies probably p, but not probably p does not imply not p. The framework makes clear the sense in which the valid inferences regarding probably p are as Moss claims.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 91,386

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Epistemology Formalized.Sarah Moss - 2013 - Philosophical Review 122 (1):1-43.
Probabilistic Justification Logic.Joseph Lurie - 2018 - Philosophies 3 (1):2.
On the emergence of reasons in inductive logic.J. Paris & M. Wafy - 2001 - Logic Journal of the IGPL 9 (2):207-216.
Probabilistic Grammars and Languages.András Kornai - 2011 - Journal of Logic, Language and Information 20 (3):317-328.
Probabilistic dynamic epistemic logic.Barteld P. Kooi - 2003 - Journal of Logic, Language and Information 12 (4):381-408.
A probabilistic extension of intuitionistic logic.Z. Ognjanovic & Z. Markovic - 2003 - Mathematical Logic Quarterly 49 (4):415.

Analytics

Added to PP
2019-03-27

Downloads
65 (#244,525)

6 months
18 (#135,061)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Patricia Rich
Universität Bayreuth

Citations of this work

Partial Reliance.Moritz Schulz - 2021 - Canadian Journal of Philosophy 51 (6):436-451.

Add more citations

References found in this work

Probabilistic Knowledge.Sarah Moss - 2018 - Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Knowledge and Its Limits.Timothy Williamson - 2000 - Philosophy 76 (297):460-464.
Knowledge and Its Limits.Timothy Williamson - 2003 - Philosophical Quarterly 53 (210):105-116.
Knowledge and Action.John Hawthorne & Jason Stanley - 2008 - Journal of Philosophy 105 (10):571-590.
The Foundations of Statistics.Leonard J. Savage - 1956 - Philosophy of Science 23 (2):166-166.

View all 22 references / Add more references