Regularity theory (philosophy)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The regularity theory of causality dates back to the 18th century and goes back to the philosopher David Hume . Hume dealt with British empiricism and in this context asked himself whether one could infer a physical law from individual observations ( induction problem ).

Hume made the connection between causes and effects a matter of mere habit . Because the same causes produce the same effects as heat does on fire, we assume a connection. But only the experience of regularity ( constant conjunction ) allows this conclusion, according to Hume. Ideas of a force exerted by the cause or of a necessary link between cause and effect cannot be held. Hume distinguished the necessary and sufficient conditions for an effect to occur. His considerations were not limited to scientific phenomena, but naturally included social and political phenomena. The legitimacy of rule, he concluded, had the fulfillment of its purposes such as common well-being as a necessary condition, to which the acceptance of the principle of selection of this rule must be added as a sufficient condition. A frequently raised objection to the regularity theory is that one speaks of a connection between cause and effect in individual cases, which is difficult to generalize.

Because in everyday life, for example, accidents or crimes have to be traced back to causes and responsible authorities, or the functioning of technical processes should be guaranteed under certain conditions, many conclusions are based on the prerequisite that effects can be regularly traced back to causes. To legitimize this mode of action, it would be advantageous to declare regularities to be a natural principle (as determined by determinism ). However, this has not been successful since Hume's objections. Theories of causality have for a long time not dealt with a regularity of the connection between cause and effect and have preferred counterfactual or probabilistic statements . John Mackie has specified and expanded Hume's approach with the INUS condition . Since around 2000 there has been a certain interest in regularity theories again.

literature

  • David Hume: An Inquiry Concerning Human Understanding and concerning the principles of morals . Clarendon Press, Oxford 2007, ISBN 978-0-19-824536-0 (unchanged reprint of London 1777 edition)
  • Michael Baumgartner: "Regularity Theories Reassessed", in: Philosophia (2008) 36, pp. 327–354.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Jens Kulenkampff: David Hume, Beck, Munich 2003, pp. 145ff. ISBN 9783406494185