Skip to content
Carmelics
TopicsThinkersChangesContributorsLoading account…

    Carmelics

    A reasoning platform. Break down any belief into clear reasons, explore both sides, and weigh the evidence honestly.

    Navigate

    • Topics
    • Search
    • Recent Changes
    • Contribute
    • How It Works
    • Glossary
    • Thinkers
    • Contributors
    • About
    • Statistics
    • Terms
    • Privacy

    Database

    Statements
    —
    Perspectives
    —
    Topics
    —

    Press ? for keyboard shortcuts

    LoyalLoyalJusticeJustice
    Made withinDC&Austin
    The new counterfactual theory of causation does not handl... — Carmelics
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
    108,905
    Topics
    42
    Home/Causation
    HistoryEditSee Inverse

    The new counterfactual theory of causation does not handle trumping completely satisfactorily

    Causation
    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    2 reasons for
    1 reason against

    Reasons For

    2 perspectives
    Reason for 1 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Lewis's similarity metric for possible worlds is notoriously world-order-dependent, granting theorists ad hoc flexibility to exclude inconvenient counterfactuals.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.Schaffer's trumping cases show that two events can be equally nomically sufficient yet only one causes the outcome, which no similarity metric can distinguish non-arbitrarily.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.Any metric that systematically privileges the major's command over the sergeant's must smuggle in prior causal knowledge, making the analysis viciously circular.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reason for 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Interventionist accounts (Woodward 2003) require that causes make a difference under ideal interventions, but in trumping both commands survive identical intervention tests.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.If no well-defined interventionist test distinguishes the major's causal status from the sergeant's, the counterfactual framework lacks the resources to ground the asymmetry it needs.
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
    ?
    • 1.The sergeant's command has some degree of influence on the soldiers' advance because if the sergeant had shouted earlier than the major with a different command, the soldiers would have obeyed his order
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 2.Lewis must dismiss these counterfactual dependencies as too distant, but no principled metric of distance is provided
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    • 3.Similar alterations of the major's command are treated as relevant to the major's causal influence, making the asymmetric treatment unprincipled
      ?

      Think about whether this reason is strong or weak

    Sign in or register to share your perspective on this statement.

    Next step

    Based on where you are in your exploration

    Strongest counterpoint
    Explore the most compelling reason on the other side.

    Topics

    Causation

    Related

    Any metric that systematically privileges the major's command over the sergeant'...If no well-defined interventionist test distinguishes the major's causal status ...Interventionist accounts (Woodward 2003) require that causes make a difference u...Lewis must dismiss these counterfactual dependencies as too distant, but no prin...
    +4 moreShow less
    Lewis's similarity metric for possible worlds is notoriously world-order-depende...Schaffer's trumping cases show that two events can be equally nomically sufficie...Similar alterations of the major's command are treated as relevant to the major'...The sergeant's command has some degree of influence on the soldiers' advance bec...

    Similar

    The new counterfactual theory of causation does not handle late preemp...85%The Stalnaker-Lewis theory of counterfactuals cannot adequately evalua...81%Counterfactual theories of causation rely on effects generally counter...79%Pervasive indeterminism undermines the plausibility of counterfactual ...79%

    Source

    AI-extracted1/3 agreementValid
    SEP: causation-counterfactual
    View source passageHide passage
    There is, however, some reason for scepticism about whether the new theory handles the examples of late preemption and trumping completely satisfactorily. In the example of late preemption, Billy’s throw has some degree of influence on the shattering of the bottle. For if Billy had thrown his rock earlier (so that it preceded Suzy’s throw) and in a different manner, the bottle would have shattered earlier and in a different manner. Likewise, the sergeant’s command has some degree of influence on
    Extraction notes

    Validity: Extracted via Max plan + API grounding/validity checks

    Details

    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (2 for, 1 against)
    Edits
    1 edit