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On Indeterminate Updating of Credences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Abstract

The strategy of updating credences by minimizing the relative entropy has been questioned by many authors, most strongly by means of the Judy Benjamin puzzle. I present a new analysis of Judy Benjamin–like forms of new information and defend the thesis that in general the rational posterior is indeterminate, meaning that a family of posterior credence functions rather than a single one is the rational response when that type of information becomes available. The proposed thesis extends naturally to all cases in which new information is traditionally handled by minimizing the relative entropy.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Philosophy of Science Association

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