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Do I Believe it? Propositional Knowledge, JTB and the SSS Approach

TOK

Introduction:

What is a good reason, a justification, for a belief? Do we rely on ourselves (our reasoning,

our intuition, our memory, our faith our senses) or others (observations, those in authority,

experts)? Even we can find a justification to support our belief, how can we be sure that it is

actually true?

Plato (thats Plato with a T not Plado the childs toy) proposes one system for verifying truth,

justified true belief. Plato proposed a method to test any claim of propositional knowledge.

According to his method, propositional knowledge must meet the following criteria:

y The statement must be believed to be true.y The belief itself must be true:

True for everyone, not just you.

True despite what people might think and believe to be true.

Eternally true.

y This true belief must be justified by one or more of the following:By logic.

By empirical evidence.

By memory.

By authority.

While propositional knowledge is the most well know of the philosophical ways to discussknowledge, it is not the only way to know something. Below is a list of other possible ways

of knowing:

y Knowledge by conviction (faith, belief).y Knowledge by introspection (self-awareness, includes empathy).y Knowledge by practice (how to ride a bike, play an instrument).y Knowledge by acquaintance (includes everything we do and everything that

happens to us, memory, intuition).

y Knowledge by instinct (genetic, not learned, behaviors).Thinking back to your original I know statements, which type of knowledge do you believe

was used to justify each claim.

Which type of knowledge to you trust more than the others? The least? Explain

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A diagnostic that can be used to test the reliability (how true it is) of knowledge claims made

by others is the Source, Statements, and Self approach. The 3 S approach is a system that can

be helpful to examine knowledge claims and begin your search for truth. Review the below

questions and use them next time you encounter a knowledge claim.

Source Statements Self

Does the source (as far as I know)seem to have senses that functionnormally for an act of observationand a sound mind forinterpretation?

Are the statements free frominternal contradictions andlogical fallacies?

Do I recognize myself bias for or

against a particular source orset of statements? Can I detectin myself pre-judgments basedon religion, race, politicalattitudes, nationality, sexual

preference, age, musical taste,style of dress, etc, which mightinfluence my assessment?

Is the source (as far as I know) freefrom the influence of alcohol, drugsor any other substance, whichmight significantly affect the act of

perception?

Is bias observable in theselection of details, emphasis

placed on those details orslanted word choice?

Do I apply critical thinking towhat I want to believe as well asto what I do not want to believe?

Does this source have a reputationfor being honest and accurate?

Does the goal seem to be reportor to persuade?

If I use my own past experiencesand understanding as a basis onwhich to judge the plausibility ofstatements (coherence), howextensive is that pastexperience?

Does thisperson/book/magazine/newspaper/blog etc. have any recognizablespecial interest, bias or othermotive for conscious orunconscious deception?

Do the statements use anygraphs, photographs, paintings,or other visualaccompaniments? Are theyemotionally affecting? Can theybe verified against an

independent source?

Am I open to having pastassumptions-even the most basicones-questioned? Am I willing toexamine evidence andarguments which counter mycurrent beliefs?

Is this source an authority relevantto the topic under consideration(e.g. a doctor of medical issues)?

Are the statements presentedfor belief supported by any formof justification? (Reason?Evidence? Memory? Intuition?

Authority? Faith?)

Is it possible to separate mybeliefs in private beliefs, basedon whatever justificationconvinces me personally (e.g.religion) and public beliefs,based on justification, whichmust convince others as well(e.g. science)?

Does this source acknowledgecounter arguments or limitationsof its own knowledge?

Is the justification givenconvincing for

private/individual belief and/orpublic/group belief?

To what extent are my privateand public beliefs mutuallyexclusive? Are they separable orinter-penetrating?

Is this source in accord with orconsistent with other sources?

Do the statements (as far as Ican tell) pass truth tests? Arethe statements coherent withmy prior understanding, orwith the body of informationalready established in the field?

What is my attitude towardbelief? Is there a differencebetween what I do, I can, orshould believe? Is there amoral dimension to what Ishould believe? Is an ethical

principle about believing a beliefabout a belief?