True belief is not instrumentally valuable

In Cory D. Wright & Nikolaj Pedersen (eds.), New Waves in Truth. Palgrave-Macmillan (2010)
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Abstract

This paper argues against the almost universally held view that truth is an instrumentally valuable property of beliefs. For truth to be instrumentally valuable in the way usually supposed, it must play a causal role in the satisfaction of our desires. As it happens, truth can play no such role, because it is screened off from causal relevance by some of the truth-like properties first discussed by Stephen Stich. Because it is not causally relevant to the success of our actions, truth is not instrumentally valuable in the way usually supposed.

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Chase Wrenn
University of Alabama

Citations of this work

The value of minimalist truth.Filippo Ferrari - 2018 - Synthese 195 (3):1103-1125.
Epistemic Instrumentalism and the Too Few Reasons Objection.Charles Côté-Bouchard - 2015 - International Journal of Philosophical Studies 23 (3):337-355.

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