--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The degree of confirmation assigned to…" description: "\"The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief system... simplicity, plausibility, and con..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png" --- # The degree of confirmation assigned to any given… ![“The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief system... simplicity, plausibility, and conservatism are properties that theories have in virtue of their relation to the whole structure of scientific beliefs taken collectively. A measure…” quote by Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png) > “The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief system... simplicity, plausibility, and conservatism are properties that theories have in virtue of their relation to the whole structure of scientific beliefs taken collectively. A measure of conservatism or simplicity would be a metric over global properties of belief systems.” [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The credibility of a hypothesis depends on how it fits within the whole belief system, considering simplicity, plausibility, and conservatism. **In simple terms:** A hypothesis fits if it aligns with the whole system. Key Takeaway Assess theories by system coherence. Themes philosophy science theory evaluation Mood analytical critical Type philosophical academic When to use this quote - research design - policy analysis - academic debate Key Concepts global belief structure parsimony conservatism Questions to Reflect On - How do you measure simplicity in a theory? - What role does conservatism play in scientific progress? A Different Perspective Complex systems are hard to quantify. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Belief System](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief-system/) [Belief systems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief-systems/) [Confirmation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confirmation/) [Conservatism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism/) [Conservatism Properties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism-properties-724807/) [Conservatism Simplicity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatism-simplicity-724808/) [Degrees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/degrees/) [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Given](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given/) [Hypothesis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hypothesis/) [Measure Conservatism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measure-conservatism-724809/) [Metrics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metrics/) [Plausibility Conservatism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plausibility-conservatism-724806/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [Relation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relation/) [Sensitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sensitive/) [Simplicity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simplicity/) [Simplicity Plausibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simplicity-plausibility-724810/) [Structure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/structure/) [Taken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taken/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [I think technology advanced faster than anticipated. In that whirlwind, a lot of companies didn't survive. The reason we have done well is because,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bezos/i-think-technology-advanced-faster-than-anticipated-in-that-whirlwind/) [Jeff Bezos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bezos/) > [Philosophy is antipoetic. Philosophize about mankind and you brush aside individual uniqueness, which a poet cannot do without self-damage. Unless, for a start, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/philosophy-is-antipoetic-philosophize-about-mankind-and-you-brush/) [Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/) > [“IT metrics have to evolve from being a cost center to becoming a revenue generator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-zhu/it-metrics-have-to-evolve-from-being-a-cost-center-to-becoming-a/) [Pearl Zhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-zhu/) > [You will not find your passion in things and you will not find your passion in money. The more things and the more money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/you-will-not-find-your-passion-in-things-and-you-will-not-find-your/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [Here is a bold embrace of internationalism. Let's join the rest of the world and go metric.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lincoln-chafee/here-is-a-bold-embrace-of-internationalism-let-s-join-the-rest-of-the/) [Lincoln Chafee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lincoln-chafee/) > [If God had meant us to go metric, why did he give Christ twelve apostles?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyles-brandreth/if-god-had-meant-us-to-go-metric-why-did-he-give-christ-twelve/) [Gyles Brandreth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyles-brandreth/) > [Spending is not caring. Spending is what politicians do instead of caring. Spending more does not guarantee success. Politicians like to measure spending because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grover-norquist/spending-is-not-caring-spending-is-what-politicians-do-instead-of/) [Grover Norquist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grover-norquist/) > [Drugs have taught an entire generation of kids the metric system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/drugs-have-taught-an-entire-generation-of-kids-the-metric-system/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [18-to-49 can only be part of the story. There are many more metrics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-tassler/18-to-49-can-only-be-part-of-the-story-there-are-many-more-metrics/) [Nina Tassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-tassler/) > [Europeans hate the way Americans talk. They think we're loud and uncouth and they don't like our jokes, except for Michael Moore. Plus, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-boyles/europeans-hate-the-way-americans-talk-they-think-we-re-loud-and/) [Denis Boyles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-boyles/) > [I think that today, more so than ever, corporate responsibility is the best strategic as well as financial path that most businesses can follow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-hollender/i-think-that-today-more-so-than-ever-corporate-responsibility-is-the/) [Jeffrey Hollender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-hollender/) > [If I collected all the diamonds in the world, I'd have no 'income' but I'd have a lot of 'assets'. Would my company be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/if-i-collected-all-the-diamonds-in-the-world-i-d-have-no-income-but-i/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [I don't understand why a 40 is a quarter of beer when a 40 is 40 ounces. It's time to embrace the metric system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/i-don-t-understand-why-a-40-is-a-quarter-of-beer-when-a-40-is-40/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [“To live the lives we truly want and deserve, and not just the lives we settle for, we need a Third Metric, a third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/to-live-the-lives-we-truly-want-and-deserve-and-not-just-the-lives-we/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [“The only measurement I understand is perfection.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/the-only-measurement-i-understand-is-perfection/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) ## More by Jerry Fodor > [Faculty Psychology is getting to be respectable again after centuries of hanging around with phrenologists and other dubious types. By faculty psychology I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/faculty-psychology-is-getting-to-be-respectable-again-after-centuries/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [...there are special sciences not because of the nature of our epistemic relation to the world, but because of the way the world is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/there-are-special-sciences-not-because-of-the-nature-of-our-epistemic/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [...if it isn't literally true that my wanting is causally responsible for my reaching, and my itching is causally responsible for my scratching, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/if-it-isn-t-literally-true-that-my-wanting-is-causally-responsible/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [To the best of my recollection, I became a philosopher because my parents wanted me to become a lawyer. It seems to me, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/to-the-best-of-my-recollection-i-became-a-philosopher-because-my/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [ Who wins a... competition \[between two traits\] is massively context sensitive. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/who-wins-a-competition-between-two-traits-is-massively-context/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [It simply isn't true, for example, that being big is in general better for fitness than being small except when there are effects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/it-simply-isn-t-true-for-example-that-being-big-is-in-general-better/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [On my bad days, I sometimes wonder what philosophers are for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/on-my-bad-days-i-sometimes-wonder-what-philosophers-are-for/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [“Thought about the world is prior to thought about how to change the world. Accordingly, knowing-that is prior to knowing-how. Descartes was right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/thought-about-the-world-is-prior-to-thought-about-how-to-change-the/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [Suppose that the organism is given the problem of determining the analysis of a stimulus at a certain level of representation - e.g., the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/suppose-that-the-organism-is-given-the-problem-of-determining-the/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [The theory of natural selection reduces to a banal truth: if a kind of creature flourishes in a kind of situation, then there must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-theory-of-natural-selection-reduces-to-a-banal-truth-if-a-kind-of/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [The data that can bear on the confirmation of perceptual hypotheses includes, in the general case, considerably less than the organism may know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-data-that-can-bear-on-the-confirmation-of-perceptual-hypotheses/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [Philosophers who pay for their semantics by drawing checks on Darwin are in debt way over their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/philosophers-who-pay-for-their-semantics-by-drawing-checks-on-darwin/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [The content of a thought depends on its external relations; on the way that the thought is related to the world, not on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-content-of-a-thought-depends-on-its-external-relations-on-the-way/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [There are lots of cases where we know more about how the world works than we do about how we know how it works.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/there-are-lots-of-cases-where-we-know-more-about-how-the-world-works/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) > [...monetary exchanges have interesting things in common; Gresham's law, if true, says what one of these interesting things is. But what is interesting about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/monetary-exchanges-have-interesting-things-in-common-gresham-s-law-if/) [Jerry Fodor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) [Explore all 22 Jerry Fodor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/) ## More Belief quotes > [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/) [Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/) > [“MIND & GRIND Self-belief and hard work can propel you past more talented peers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/mind-grind-self-belief-and-hard-work-can-propel-you-past-more/) [Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/) [Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/) > [“Here is a fundamental difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is 'of the world', judges everything by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/here-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-the-man-of-faith-and-the-man/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [“She herself vacillated when it came to belief. She did not particularly believe in God. Or, rather, she didn't believe in a particular God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/she-herself-vacillated-when-it-came-to-belief-she-did-not/) [Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“Rigid traditions capture souls prisons of spiritual thought man’s religion has captured a god grown too small and very weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle/rigid-traditions-capture-souls-prisons-of-spiritual-thought-man-s/) [David W Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [In business, as in politics, it is never easy to go against the beliefs and attitudes held by the majority. The businessman who moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-paul-getty/in-business-as-in-politics-it-is-never-easy-to-go-against-the-beliefs/) [J. Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/) > [There's no greatest moment in the arts. It's a life; it's a continuity thing. You can't have a great moment because it's spiritual. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-neiman/there-s-no-greatest-moment-in-the-arts-it-s-a-life-it-s-a-continuity/) [LeRoy Neiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-neiman/) > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) [Browse all 10,268 Belief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief system... simplicity, plausibility, and conservatism are properties that theories have in virtue of their relation to the whole structure of scientific beliefs taken collectively. A measure of conservatism or simplicity would be a metric over global properties of belief systems.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jerry Fodor" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-any-given-hypothesis-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belief" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-any-given-hypothesis-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f1/jerry-fodor-26279_belief_the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-a_1657833.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The degree of confirmation assigned to any given hypothesis is sensitive to properties of the entire belief…” — Jerry Fodor", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jerry Fodor", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-fodor/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The degree of confirmation assigned to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-any-given-hypothesis-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-fodor/the-degree-of-confirmation-assigned-to-any-given-hypothesis-is/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```