The PhilPapers SurveysPreliminary Survey results (Back to contents)

Note: set response grain to "fine" for details on "other" responses.

Population  AOS Response details

A priori knowledge: yes or no?

Accept or lean toward: yes 345 / 502 (68.7%)
Accept or lean toward: no 117 / 502 (23.3%)
Other 40 / 502 (8.0%)

Abstract objects: Platonism or nominalism?

Accept or lean toward: Platonism 200 / 502 (39.8%)
Accept or lean toward: nominalism 190 / 502 (37.8%)
Other 112 / 502 (22.3%)

Aesthetic value: objective or subjective?

Accept or lean toward: subjective 211 / 502 (42.0%)
Accept or lean toward: objective 181 / 502 (36.1%)
Other 110 / 502 (21.9%)

Analytic-synthetic distinction: yes or no?

Accept or lean toward: yes 319 / 502 (63.5%)
Accept or lean toward: no 145 / 502 (28.9%)
Other 38 / 502 (7.6%)

Epistemic justification: internalism or externalism?

Accept or lean toward: externalism 240 / 502 (47.8%)
Other 132 / 502 (26.3%)
Accept or lean toward: internalism 130 / 502 (25.9%)

External world: idealism, skepticism, or non-skeptical realism?

Accept or lean toward: non-skeptical realism 406 / 502 (80.9%)
Other 45 / 502 (9.0%)
Accept or lean toward: skepticism 27 / 502 (5.4%)
Accept or lean toward: idealism 24 / 502 (4.8%)

Free will: compatibilism, libertarianism, or no free will?

Accept or lean toward: compatibilism 295 / 502 (58.8%)
Other 78 / 502 (15.5%)
Accept or lean toward: no free will 68 / 502 (13.5%)
Accept or lean toward: libertarianism 61 / 502 (12.2%)

God: theism or atheism?

Accept or lean toward: atheism 370 / 502 (73.7%)
Other 67 / 502 (13.3%)
Accept or lean toward: theism 65 / 502 (12.9%)

Knowledge claims: contextualism, relativism, or invariantism?

Accept or lean toward: contextualism 209 / 502 (41.6%)
Accept or lean toward: invariantism 159 / 502 (31.7%)
Other 107 / 502 (21.3%)
Accept or lean toward: relativism 27 / 502 (5.4%)

Knowledge: empiricism or rationalism?

Other 182 / 502 (36.3%)
Accept or lean toward: empiricism 177 / 502 (35.3%)
Accept or lean toward: rationalism 143 / 502 (28.5%)

Laws of nature: Humean or non-Humean?

Accept or lean toward: non-Humean 243 / 502 (48.4%)
Accept or lean toward: Humean 159 / 502 (31.7%)
Other 100 / 502 (19.9%)

Logic: classical or non-classical?

Accept or lean toward: classical 251 / 502 (50.0%)
Other 139 / 502 (27.7%)
Accept or lean toward: non-classical 112 / 502 (22.3%)

Mental content: internalism or externalism?

Accept or lean toward: externalism 279 / 502 (55.6%)
Other 118 / 502 (23.5%)
Accept or lean toward: internalism 105 / 502 (20.9%)

Meta-ethics: moral realism or moral anti-realism?

Accept or lean toward: moral realism 266 / 502 (53.0%)
Accept or lean toward: moral anti-realism 153 / 502 (30.5%)
Other 83 / 502 (16.5%)

Metaphilosophy: naturalism or non-naturalism?

Accept or lean toward: naturalism 244 / 502 (48.6%)
Accept or lean toward: non-naturalism 133 / 502 (26.5%)
Other 125 / 502 (24.9%)

Mind: physicalism or non-physicalism?

Accept or lean toward: physicalism 290 / 502 (57.8%)
Accept or lean toward: non-physicalism 136 / 502 (27.1%)
Other 76 / 502 (15.1%)

Moral judgment: cognitivism or non-cognitivism?

Accept or lean toward: cognitivism 290 / 502 (57.8%)
Accept or lean toward: non-cognitivism 108 / 502 (21.5%)
Other 104 / 502 (20.7%)

Moral motivation: internalism or externalism?

Other 193 / 502 (38.4%)
Accept or lean toward: internalism 172 / 502 (34.3%)
Accept or lean toward: externalism 137 / 502 (27.3%)

Newcomb's problem: one box or two boxes?

Other 255 / 502 (50.8%)
Accept or lean toward: two boxes 133 / 502 (26.5%)
Accept or lean toward: one box 114 / 502 (22.7%)

Normative ethics: deontology, consequentialism, or virtue ethics?

Other 163 / 502 (32.5%)
Accept or lean toward: consequentialism 133 / 502 (26.5%)
Accept or lean toward: virtue ethics 103 / 502 (20.5%)
Accept or lean toward: deontology 103 / 502 (20.5%)

Perceptual experience: disjunctivism, qualia theory, representationalism, or sense-datum theory?

Other 193 / 502 (38.4%)
Accept or lean toward: representationalism 162 / 502 (32.3%)
Accept or lean toward: qualia theory 63 / 502 (12.5%)
Accept or lean toward: disjunctivism 61 / 502 (12.2%)
Accept or lean toward: sense-datum theory 23 / 502 (4.6%)

Personal identity: biological view, psychological view, or further-fact view?

Other 200 / 502 (39.8%)
Accept or lean toward: psychological view 156 / 502 (31.1%)
Accept or lean toward: biological view 89 / 502 (17.7%)
Accept or lean toward: further-fact view 57 / 502 (11.4%)

Politics: communitarianism, egalitarianism, or libertarianism?

Other 214 / 502 (42.6%)
Accept or lean toward: egalitarianism 135 / 502 (26.9%)
Accept or lean toward: communitarianism 82 / 502 (16.3%)
Accept or lean toward: libertarianism 71 / 502 (14.1%)

Proper names: Fregean or Millian?

Accept or lean toward: Millian 200 / 502 (39.8%)
Accept or lean toward: Fregean 184 / 502 (36.7%)
Other 118 / 502 (23.5%)

Science: scientific realism or scientific anti-realism?

Accept or lean toward: scientific realism 356 / 502 (70.9%)
Accept or lean toward: scientific anti-realism 85 / 502 (16.9%)
Other 61 / 502 (12.2%)

Teletransporter (new matter): survival or death?

Accept or lean toward: survival 181 / 502 (36.1%)
Other 178 / 502 (35.5%)
Accept or lean toward: death 143 / 502 (28.5%)

Time: A-theory or B-theory?

Other 284 / 502 (56.6%)
Accept or lean toward: B-theory 136 / 502 (27.1%)
Accept or lean toward: A-theory 82 / 502 (16.3%)

Trolley problem (five straight ahead, one on side track, turn requires switching, what ought one do?): switch or don't switch?

Accept or lean toward: switch 325 / 502 (64.7%)
Other 132 / 502 (26.3%)
Accept or lean toward: don't switch 45 / 502 (9.0%)

Truth: correspondence, deflationary, or epistemic?

Accept or lean toward: correspondence 248 / 502 (49.4%)
Accept or lean toward: deflationary 123 / 502 (24.5%)
Other 88 / 502 (17.5%)
Accept or lean toward: epistemic 43 / 502 (8.6%)

Zombies: inconceivable, conceivable but not metaphysically possible, or metaphysically possible?

Accept or lean toward: conceivable but not metaphysically possible 188 / 502 (37.5%)
Accept or lean toward: metaphysically possible 110 / 502 (21.9%)
Accept or lean toward: inconceivable 107 / 502 (21.3%)
Other 97 / 502 (19.3%)

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