Examine individual changes

'{{for2|the school of philosophy|[[Philosophical skepticism]]| assertations to avoid uncomfortable truth|[[Denialism]]|}} {{other uses|Skepticism (band)|Skeptic (disambiguation)}} {{short description|Questioning attitude or doubt towards one or more items of putative knowledge or belief}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}} '''Skepticism''' ([[American English]] and [[Canadian English]]) or '''scepticism''' ([[British English]] and [[Australian English]]) is generally a questioning attitude or [[doubt]] towards one or more items of putative [[knowledge]] or [[belief]] or [[dogma]].<ref>{{cite book |first=R. H. |last=Popkin |title=The History of Skepticism from Erasmus to Descartes (rev. ed. 1968); C. L. Stough, Greek Skepticism (1969); M. Burnyeat, ed., The Skeptical Tradition (1983); B. Stroud, The Significance of Philosophical Skepticism (1984) |url=http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Skeptikoi |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com}}</ref><ref>"Philosophical views are typically classed as skeptical when they involve advancing some degree of doubt regarding claims that are elsewhere taken for granted." [http://www.utm.edu/research/iep/s/skepcont.htm utm.edu]</ref> It is often directed at domains, such as the [[supernatural]], morality ([[moral skepticism]]), [[theism]] (skepticism about the existence of God), or knowledge (skepticism about the possibility of knowledge, or of certainty).<ref>{{Cite book|title = The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ozv0lftrUeEC|publisher = Oxford University Press, US|year = 2008|isbn = 9780195183214|language = en|first = John|last = Greco|authorlink=John Greco (philosopher)}}</ref> Formally, skepticism as a topic occurs in the context of [[philosophy]], particularly [[epistemology]], although it can be applied to any topic such as politics, religion, and pseudoscience. [[Philosophical skepticism]] comes in various forms. Radical forms of skepticism deny that knowledge or rational belief is possible and urge us to [[suspension of judgment|suspend judgment]] on many or all controversial matters. More moderate forms of skepticism claim only that nothing can be known with certainty, or that we can know little or nothing about the big questions in life, such as whether God exists or whether there is an afterlife. [[Religious skepticism]] is "doubt concerning basic religious principles (such as immortality, providence, and revelation)".<ref>{{Cite web|title = Definition of SKEPTICISM|url = http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skepticism|website = www.merriam-webster.com|access-date = 2016-02-05}}</ref> [[Scientific skepticism]] concerns testing beliefs for reliability, by subjecting them to [[wikt:systematic|systematic]] investigation using the [[scientific method]], to discover [[empirical evidence]] for them. ==Definition== In ordinary usage, skepticism (US) or scepticism (UK) ([[Ancient Greek|Greek:]] 'σκέπτομαι' ''skeptomai'', to search, to think about or look for; see also [[Draught and draft|spelling differences]]) can refer to: # an attitude of doubt or a disposition to incredulity either in general or toward a particular object; # the [[doctrine]] that true [[knowledge]] or some particular knowledge is uncertain; # the method of [[suspension of judgment|suspended judgment]], systematic [[doubt]], or criticism that is characteristic of skeptics (Merriam–Webster). In [[philosophy]], skepticism can refer to: # a mode of inquiry that emphasizes critical scrutiny, caution, and intellectual rigor; # a method of obtaining knowledge through systematic doubt and continual testing; # a set of claims about the limitations of human knowledge and the proper response to such limitations. ==Philosophy== {{Pyrrhonism sidebar}}{{Main|Philosophical skepticism}} As a philosophical school or movement, skepticism arose both in ancient Greece and India. In India the [[Ajñana]] school of philosophy espoused skepticism. It was a major early rival of [[Buddhism]] and [[Jainism]], and a major influence on Buddhism. Two of the foremost disciples of the [[Buddha]], [[Sariputta]] and [[Maudgalyayana|Moggallāna]], were initially the students of the Ajñana philosopher [[Sanjaya Belatthiputta]], and a strong element of skepticism is found in [[Early Buddhism]], most particularly in the [[Atthakavagga and Parayanavagga|Aṭṭhakavagga]] sutra. Since skepticism is a philosophical attitude and a style of philosophising rather than a position, the Ajñanins may have influenced other skeptical thinkers of India such as [[Nagarjuna]], [[Jayarāśi Bhaṭṭa]], and [[Shriharsha]].{{sfn|Matilal|2004|pp=52–75}} In Greece philosophers as early as [[Xenophanes]] (c. 570 – c. 475 BC) expressed skeptical views, as did [[Democritus]]<ref>[[#DL|Diogenes Laërtius]] (tr. [[Robert Drew Hicks|Hicks]], 1925), [[s:Lives of the Eminent Philosophers/Book IX#cite ref-102|ix.72]]. See also [[#Fr|Bakalis]] (2005, p. 86)</ref> and a number of [[Sophists]]. [[Gorgias]], for example, reputedly argued that nothing exists, that even if there were something we could not know it, and that even if we could know it we could not communicate it.<ref>W. T. Jones, ''A History of Western Philosophy''. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1952, p. 60 n. 45.</ref> The [[Heraclitus|Heraclitean]] philosopher [[Cratylus]] refused to discuss anything and would merely wriggle his finger, claiming that communication is impossible since meanings are constantly changing.<ref>Richard H. Popkin, "Skepticism", in Paul Edwards, ed., ''The Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', vol. 7. New York: Macmillan, 1967, p. 449.</ref> [[Socrates]] also had skeptical tendencies, claiming to know nothing worthwhile.<ref>Allan Hazlett, ''A Critical Introduction to Skepticism''. London: Bloomsbury, 2014, p. 4-5.</ref> There were two major schools of skepticism in the ancient Greek and Roman world. The first was [[Pyrrhonism]], was founded by [[Pyrrho of Elis]] (c. 360–270 BCE). The second was [[Academic Skepticism]], so-called because its two leading defenders, [[Arcesilaus]] (c. 315–240 BCE) who initiated the philosophy, and [[Carneades]] (c. 217–128 BCE), the philosophy's most famous proponent, were heads of Plato's [[Academy]]. Pyrrhonism's aims are psychological. It urges suspension of judgment (''[[epoche]]'') to achieve mental tranquility (''[[ataraxia]]''). The Academic Skeptics denied that knowledge is possible. The Academic Skeptics claimed that some beliefs are more reasonable or probable than others, whereas Pyrrhonian skeptics argue that equally compelling arguments can be given for or against any disputed view.<ref>Popkin, "Skepticism", p. 450.</ref> Nearly all the writings of the ancient skeptics are now lost. Most of what we know about ancient skepticism is from [[Sextus Empiricus]], a Pyrrhonian skeptic who lived in the second or third century CE. His works contain a lucid summary of stock skeptical arguments. Ancient skepticism faded out during the late Roman Empire, particularly after [[Augustine]] (354–430 CE) attacked the skeptics in his work ''Against the Academics'' (386 CE). There was little knowledge of, or interest in, ancient skepticism in Christian Europe during the Middle Ages. Interest revived during the Renaissance and Reformation, particularly after the complete writings of Sextus Empiricus were translated into Latin in 1569. A number of Catholic writers, including [[Francisco Sanches]] (c. 1550–1623), [[Michel de Montaigne]] (1533–1592), [[Pierre Gassendi]] (1592–1655), and [[Marin Mersenne]] (1588–1648) deployed ancient skeptical arguments to defend moderate forms of skepticism and to argue that faith, rather than reason, must be the primary guide to truth. Similar arguments were offered later (perhaps ironically) by the Protestant thinker [[Pierre Bayle]] in his influential Historical and Critical Dictionary (1697–1702).<ref>Richard H. Popkin, ''The History of Skepticism from Erasmus to Spinoza'', rev. ed. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979, chaps 1 and 2.</ref> The growing popularity of skeptical views created an intellectual crisis in seventeenth-century Europe. One major response was offered by the French philosopher and mathematician [[René Descartes]] (1596–1650). In his classic work, ''Meditations of First Philosophy'' (1641), Descartes sought to refute skepticism, but only after he had formulated the case for skepticism as powerfully as possible. Descartes argued that no matter what radical skeptical possibilities we imagine there are certain truths (e.g., that thinking is occurring, or that I exist) that are absolutely certain. Thus, the ancient skeptics were wrong to claim that knowledge is impossible. Descartes also attempted to refute skeptical doubts about the reliability of our senses, our memory, and other cognitive faculties. To do this, Descartes tried to prove that God exists and that God would not allow us to be systematically deceived about the nature of reality. Many contemporary philosophers question whether this second stage of Descartes' critique of skepticism is successful.<ref>See, e.g., Popkin, ''The History of Skepticism'', p. 210.</ref> In the eighteenth century a powerful new case for skepticism was offered by the Scottish philosopher [[David Hume]] (1711–1776). Hume was an empiricist, claiming that all genuine ideas can be traced back to original impressions of sensation or introspective consciousness. Hume argued forcefully that on empiricist grounds there are no sound reasons for belief in God, an enduring self or soul, an external world, causal necessity, objective morality, or inductive reasoning. In fact, he argued that "Philosophy would render us entirely Pyrrhonian, were not Nature too strong for it."<ref>Quoted in Popkin, "Skepticism", p. 456.</ref> As Hume saw it, the real basis of human belief is not reason, but custom or habit. We are hard-wired by nature to trust, say, our memories or inductive reasoning, and no skeptical arguments, however powerful, can dislodge those beliefs. In this way, Hume embraced what he called a "mitigated" skepticism, while rejecting an "excessive" Pyrrhonian skepticism that he saw as both impractical and psychologically impossible. Hume's skepticism provoked a number of important responses. Hume's Scottish contemporary, [[Thomas Reid]] (1710–1796), challenged Hume's strict empiricism and argued that it is rational to accept "common-sense" beliefs such as the basic reliability of our senses, our reason, our memories, and inductive reasoning, even though none of these things can be proved. In Reid's view, such common-sense beliefs are foundational and require no proof in order to be rationally justified.<ref>Popkin, "Skepticism", p. 456.</ref> Not long after Hume's death, the great German philosopher [[Immanuel Kant]] (1724–1804) argued that human moral awareness makes no sense unless we reject Hume's skeptical conclusions about the existence of God, the soul, free will, and an afterlife. According to Kant, while Hume was right to claim that we cannot strictly ''know'' any of these things, our moral experience entitles us to believe in them.<ref>Popkin, "Skepticism", p. 457.</ref> Today, skepticism continues to be a topic of lively debate among philosophers.<ref>See, e.g., John Greco, ed., ''The Oxford Handbook of Skepticism''. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008.</ref> ==Religion== {{Main|Religious skepticism}} Religious skepticism generally refers to doubting given religious beliefs or claims. Historically, religious skepticism can be traced back to [[Xenophanes]], who doubted many religious claims of his time. Modern religious skepticism typically emphasizes scientific and historical methods or evidence, with [[Michael Shermer]] writing that skepticism is a process for discovering the truth rather than general non-acceptance.{{clarify|date=February 2016}} For example, a religious skeptic might believe that [[Jesus]] existed while questioning claims that he was the messiah or performed miracles (see [[historicity of Jesus]]). Religious skepticism is not the same as [[atheism]] or [[agnosticism]], though these often do involve skeptical attitudes toward religion and philosophical theology (for example, towards divine [[omnipotence]]). Religious people are generally skeptical about claims of other religions, at least when the two denominations conflict concerning some stated belief. Additionally, they may also be skeptical of the claims made by atheists.<ref>{{cite web|last=Mann|first=Daniel|title=Skeptical of Atheism|url=http://mannsword.blogspot.com/2009/12/skeptical-of-atheism.html|publisher=Apologetics for Today|accessdate=2 December 2013}}</ref> The historian [[Will Durant]] writes that [[Plato]] was "as skeptical of atheism as of any other dogma". == Science== {{Main|Skeptical movement#Scientific skepticism}} A scientific or [[empirical]] skeptic is one who questions beliefs on the basis of scientific understanding and empirical evidence. [[Scientific]] skepticism may discard beliefs pertaining to ''purported phenomena'' not subject to reliable observation and thus not systematic or [[falsifiability|testable]] empirically. Most scientists, being scientific skeptics, test the reliability of certain kinds of claims by subjecting them to a systematic investigation using some type of the [[scientific method]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.csicop.org/si/show/scientific_skepticism_csicop_and_the_local_groups|title=Scientific Skepticism, CSICOP, and the Local Groups – CSI|website=www.csicop.org|access-date=2018-07-05}}</ref> As a result, [[List of topics characterized as pseudoscience|a number of claims]] are considered as "[[pseudoscience]]", if they are found to improperly apply or ignore the fundamental aspects of the scientific method. == Auditing == Professional skepticism is an important concept in auditing. It requires an auditor to have a "questioning mind", to make a critical assessment of evidence, and to consider the sufficiency of the evidence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://pcaobus.org/Standards/Auditing/Pages/AU230.aspx#ps-pcaob_1c410f9b-5033-4f18-b865-af1307863bee|title=AU 230 Due Professional Care in the Performance of Work|website=pcaobus.org|language=en-US|access-date=2018-04-28}}</ref> ==See also== {{Div col}} * [[Atheism: A Rough History of Disbelief|''A Brief History of Disbelief'']] – 3-part [[PBS|PBS series]] (2007) * [[Critical thinking]] * [[Debunker]] (one who exposes claims as being false) * [[Denialism]] * [[Doubt]] * [[Richard Popkin]] * [[Pseudoskepticism]] * [[Scientific skepticism]] * [[Scientism]] * [[Trivialism]] (opposite of skepticism) * [[Transactionalism]] * [[List of topics characterized as pseudoscience]] * [[The Skeptic (UK magazine)|''The Skeptic'' (UK magazine)]], founded by Wendy M. Grossman, examines secularism and the paranormal * [[Committee for Skeptical Inquiry]], a non-profit organization to encourage the investigation of paranormal and fringe-science * ''[[Skeptical Inquirer]]'', magazine published by the [[Committee for Skeptical Inquiry]] * [[The Skeptics Society]], a nonprofit organization devoted to resisting the spread of pseudoscience, superstition, and irrational beliefs * [[Skeptic (U.S. magazine)|''Skeptic'' (U.S. magazine)]], magazine of The Skeptics Society * ''[[Skepticality]]'', a biweekly podcast of the US Skeptics Society's ''Skeptic'' magazine * ''[[The Skeptic's Dictionary]]'', a collection of essays by Robert Todd Carroll * [[Skeptical movement]], a movement based on scientific skepticism, a term introduced by Carl Sagan * [[Skeptics in the Pub]], a social meet-up group * [[The Amaz!ng Meeting]], an annual conference on science, skepticism, and critical thinking * [[Climate change denial]] is often mislabeled as skepticism {{div col end}} ==Notes== {{Reflist}} ==Sources== * ''[[A Greek-English Lexicon]]'', [[Henry George Liddell]] and [[Robert Scott (philologist)|Robert Scott]], revised and augmented throughout by Sir [[Henry Stuart Jones]], with the assistance of Roderick McKenzie, [[Clarendon Press]], Oxford, UK, 1940. [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057 Online], perseus.tufts.edu. * [[Panayot Butchvarov|Butchvarov, Panayot]], ''Skepticism About the External World'' ([[Oxford University Press]], 1998). * {{Citation |last= Daniels, M.D. |first= D. |last2= Price, PhD |first2= V. |title= The Essential Enneagram | place = New York | publisher = [[HarperCollins]] | year = 2000}} * [[Richard Hönigswald]], ''Die Skepsis in Philosophie und Wissenschaft'', 1914, new edition (ed. and introduction by Christian Benne and Thomas Schirren), Göttingen: Edition Ruprecht, 2008, {{ISBN|978-3-7675-3056-0}} * Keeton, Morris T., "skepticism", pp.&nbsp;277–278 in Dagobert D. Runes (ed.), ''Dictionary of Philosophy'', Littlefield, Adams, and Company, Totowa, NJ, 1962. * {{cite journal |journal=Logos & Episteme |last=Le Morvan |first=P. |title=Healthy Skepticism and Practical Wisdom |volume=2 |number=1 |date=March 2011 |pages=87–102 |url=http://logos-and-episteme.acadiasi.ro/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/HEALTHY-SKEPTICISM-AND-PRACTICAL-WISDOM.pdf |publisher=Institute for Economic and Social Research |issn=2069-0533 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904064026/https://owd.tcnj.edu/~lemorvan/documents/LE_Skepticism.pdf |archive-date=2019-09-04|doi=10.5840/logos-episteme20112151 }} * ''Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language, Second Edition, Unabridged'', W.A. Neilson, T.A. Knott, P.W. Carhart (eds.), G. & C. Merriam Company, Springfield, MA, 1950. ==Further reading== * {{Cite book|title = Don't Get Fooled Again: A Sceptic's Handbook|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=RwFEOwAACAAJ|publisher = Icon|year = 2009|isbn = 9781848310520|language = en|first = Richard|last = Wilson}} * {{Cite book|title = The History of Scepticism : From Savonarola to Bayle|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=7j8PdlgFRDAC|publisher = Oxford University Press, US|year = 2003|isbn = 9780198026716|language = en|first = Richard H. |last = Popkin |authorlink=Richard Henry Popkin }} * {{Cite book|title = Sextus Empiricus: Outlines of Pyrrhonism|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8WPhjgEACAAJ|publisher = Harvard University Press|year = 1933|isbn = 9780674993013|language = en|first = Robert Gregg|last = Bury |authorlink=Robert Gregg Bury }} * {{Cite book|title = Sextus Empiricus: Outlines of Scepticism|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=mzO77w6KvDgC|publisher = Cambridge University Press|date = 2000-07-20|isbn = 9780521778091|language = en|first = Sextus|last = Empiricus|first2 = Julia|last2 = Annas|first3 = Jonathan|last3 = Barnes |authorlink2=Julia Annas |authorlink3=Jonathan Barnes }} * {{Cite book|title = The Skeptical Tradition|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=_5m2kdMwOswC|publisher = University of California Press|year = 1983|isbn = 9780520037472|language = en|first = Myles|last = Burnyeat |authorlink=Myles Frederic Burnyeat }} * {{Cite journal|title = A close look at therapeutic touch|journal = JAMA|date = 1998-04-01|issn = 0098-7484|pages = 1005–1010|volume = 279|issue = 13|doi = 10.1001/jama.279.13.1005|last = Rosa L|last2 = Rosa E|last3 = Sarner L|last4 = Barrett S|pmid=9533499|doi-access = free}} * {{Cite book|title = The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe: How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4T5fDwAAQBAJ|publisher = Hodder & Stoughton|year = 2018|isbn = 9781473696419|language = en|first = Steven|last = Novella |authorlink=Steven Novella }} ==External links== {{Wiktionary}} {{Wikiquote}} {{commons category|Skepticism}} * {{PhilPapers|category|skepticism}} * {{InPho|taxonomy|2391}} * {{cite SEP |url-id=skepticism |title=Skepticism |last=Klein |first=Peter}} * {{cite SEP |url-id=skepticism-ancient |title=Ancient Greek Skepticism |last=Vogt |first=Katja}} * {{cite IEP |url-id=skepanci/ |title=Ancient Greek Skepticism |last=Thorsrud |first=Harald}} * {{cite SEP |url-id=skepticism-medieval/ |title=Medieval Skepticism |last=Bolyard |first=Charles}} * {{cite IEP |url-id=skepcont/ |title=Contemporary Skepticism |last=Pritchard |first=Duncan}} * {{curlie|Science/Science_in_Society/Skeptical_Inquiry|Skeptical Inquiry}} * [https://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7915 "Most Scientific Papers are Probably Wrong"], ''[[New Scientist]]'', 30 August 2005 * [http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:4725014 ''Classical Skepticism''] by [[Peter Suber]] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070715132139/http://www.csicop.org/articles/19991214-century/ "Outstanding skeptics of the 20th century"] – ''[[Skeptical Inquirer]]'' magazine {{Navboxes |list= {{analytic philosophy}} {{epistemology}} {{skepticism}} {{philosophy of science}} }} {{Portal bar|Philosophy|Psychology}} {{Authority control}} [[Category:Skepticism| ]] [[Category:Epistemological theories]] [[Category:Philosophical methodology]] [[Category:Philosophical movements]] [[Category:Psychological attitude]] [[Category:Scientific method]] [[Category:Doubt]]'