return to list of latest ideas

Single Idea 20215

[catalogued under 13. Knowledge Criteria / B. Internal Justification / 1. Epistemic virtues]

Full Idea

A justified belief is what a person who is motivated by intellectual virtue, and who has the understanding of his cognitive situation a virtuous person would have, might believe in like circumstances.

Gist of Idea

A justified belief emulates the understanding and beliefs of an intellectually virtuous person

Source

Linda Trinkaus Zagzebski (Virtues of the Mind [1996], II 6.1)

A Reaction

This is a whole-hearted definition of justification in terms of a theory of intellectual virtues. Presumably this would allow robots to have justified beliefs, if they managed to behave the way intellectually virtuous persons would behave.

Book Reference

Zagzebski,Linda: 'Virtues of the Mind' [CUP 1996], p.241