New theory about old evidence
pp. 1225-1250
Abstract
We present a conservative extension of a Bayesian account of confirmation that can deal with the problem of old evidence and new theories. So-called open-minded Bayesianism challenges the assumption—implicit in standard Bayesianism—that the correct empirical hypothesis is among the ones currently under consideration. It requires the inclusion of a catch-all hypothesis, which is characterized by means of sets of probability assignments. Upon the introduction of a new theory, the former catch-all is decomposed into a new empirical hypothesis and a new catch-all. As will be seen, this motivates a second update rule, besides Bayes’ rule, for updating probabilities in light of a new theory. This rule conserves probability ratios among the old hypotheses. This framework allows for old evidence to confirm a new hypothesis due to a shift in the theoretical context. The result is a version of Bayesianism that, in the words of Earman, “keep[s] an open mind, but not so open that your brain falls out”.
Publication details
Published in:
Gebharter Alexander, Schurz Gerhard (2016) Causation, probability, and truth. Synthese 193 (4).
Pages: 1225-1250
DOI: 10.1007/s11229-014-0632-x
Full citation:
Wenmackers Sylvia, Romeijn Jan-Willem (2016) „New theory about old evidence“. Synthese 193 (4), 1225–1250.