- Title Pages
- Acknowledgements
- Dedication
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I Introductory Essays
- 1 A New Look at Causality
- 2 Determinism and Indeterminism in Modern Science
- 3 Comets, Pollen, and Dreams Some Reflections on Scientific Explanation
- 4 Scientific Explanation
- 5 The Importance of Scientific Understanding
- Part II Scientific Explanation
- 6 A Third Dogma of Empiricism
- 7 Causal and Theoretical Explanation
- 8 Why Ask, “Why?”?
- 9 Deductivism Visited and Revisited
- 10 Explanatory Asymmetry
- 11 Van Fraassen on Explanation
- Part III Causality
- 12 An “At‐At” Theory of Causal Influence
- 13 Causal Propensities
- 14 Probabilistic Causality
- 15 Intuitions—Good and Not‐So‐Good
- 16 Causality Without Counterfactuals
- 17 Indeterminacy, Indeterminism, and Quantum Mechanics
- Part IV Concise Overviews
- 18 Causality
- 19 Scientific Explanation
- 20 Scientific Explanation
- Part V Applications to Other Disciplines
- 21 Alternative Models of Scientific Explanation
- 22 Causality in Archaeological Explanation
- 23 Explanation in Archaeology
- 24 The Formulation of Why‐Questions
- 25 Quasars, Causality, and Geometry
- 26 Dreams of a Famous Physicist
- References
- Index
Causal Propensities
Causal Propensities
Statistical Causality versus Aleatory Causality
- Chapter:
- (p.200) 13 Causal Propensities
- Source:
- Causality and Explanation
- Author(s):
Wesley C. Salmon
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
Argues that indeterministic causality cannot be explicated adequately by means of statistical‐relevance relations alone. Physical considerations are also required. The same point applies to deterministic causality. This essay sets the author's view of causality apart from standard treatments in terms of abstract relations such as necessary condition, sufficient condition, and statistical relevance. These relationships, in and of themselves, do not provide physical – or causal – connections.
Keywords: deterministic causality, indeterministic causality, necessary condition, statistical relevance, sufficient condition
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- Title Pages
- Acknowledgements
- Dedication
- Preface
- Introduction
- Part I Introductory Essays
- 1 A New Look at Causality
- 2 Determinism and Indeterminism in Modern Science
- 3 Comets, Pollen, and Dreams Some Reflections on Scientific Explanation
- 4 Scientific Explanation
- 5 The Importance of Scientific Understanding
- Part II Scientific Explanation
- 6 A Third Dogma of Empiricism
- 7 Causal and Theoretical Explanation
- 8 Why Ask, “Why?”?
- 9 Deductivism Visited and Revisited
- 10 Explanatory Asymmetry
- 11 Van Fraassen on Explanation
- Part III Causality
- 12 An “At‐At” Theory of Causal Influence
- 13 Causal Propensities
- 14 Probabilistic Causality
- 15 Intuitions—Good and Not‐So‐Good
- 16 Causality Without Counterfactuals
- 17 Indeterminacy, Indeterminism, and Quantum Mechanics
- Part IV Concise Overviews
- 18 Causality
- 19 Scientific Explanation
- 20 Scientific Explanation
- Part V Applications to Other Disciplines
- 21 Alternative Models of Scientific Explanation
- 22 Causality in Archaeological Explanation
- 23 Explanation in Archaeology
- 24 The Formulation of Why‐Questions
- 25 Quasars, Causality, and Geometry
- 26 Dreams of a Famous Physicist
- References
- Index
