Jennifer Carr (Leeds): Accuracy without Consequences

Abstract: Veritism is the claim that the fundamental source of epistemic value of doxastic states is accuracy. I present some puzzles that show that in order for epistemic utility theory to vindicate veritism, its decision rules must be revised. But the revisionary form of epistemic utility conflicts with evidentialism. So epistemic utility theorists face a dilemma: they must give up either evidentialism or veritism. I argue that we should reject both traditional and revisionary epistemic utility theory as decision theories, and I provide a non-normative interpretation of epistemic utility theory’s mathematical machinery.