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Cyclical Preferences and World Bayesianism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 April 2022

Jordan Howard Sobel
Jordan Howard Sobel*
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, University of Toronto
*
†Send reprint requests to the author, Scarborough College, University of Toronto, 1265 Military Trail, Scarborough, ONT, MIC IA4, Canada.
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Abstract

An example shows that ‘pairwise preferences’ (certain hypothetical choices) can cycle even when rational. General considerations entail that preferences tout court (certain relations of actual valuations) cannot cycle. A world-bayesian theory is explained that accommodates these two kinds of preference, and a theory for rational actions that would have them maximize and be objects of ratifiable choices. It is observed that choices can be unratifiable either because of troublesome credences or because of troublesome preferences. An appendix comments on a third way in which efforts to maximize can be frustrated.

Type
Research Article
Information
Philosophy of Science , Volume 64 , Issue 1 , March 1997 , pp. 42 - 73
Copyright
Copyright © 1997 by the Philosophy of Science Association

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Footnotes

‡

Thanks to Gustaf Arrhenius, Lars Bergström, Krister Bykvist, Bruce Chapman, Bill Harper, Sten Lindström, Christian Munthe, John Nicholas, Wlodek Rabinowicz, Willa Freeman-Sobel, Bertil Strömberg, and anonymous readers for helpful criticisms and suggestions.

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