Single Idea 3573

[catalogued under 13. Knowledge Criteria / C. External Justification / 3. Reliabilism / a. Reliable knowledge]

Full Idea

The radical externalists' key notion is 'reliability', which is a normative condition governing adequate performance, involving reference to a range of conditions which we decide rather than discover.

Gist of Idea

Externalist reliability refers to a range of conventional conditions

Source

Michael Williams (Problems of Knowledge [2001], Ch. 2)

Book Reference

Williams,Michael: 'Problems of Knowledge' [OUP 2001], p.33


A Reaction

If we can decide whether a source is reliable, we can also decide whether a reliable source has performed well on this occasion, and that will always take precedence.