Metaaxiology

Metaaxiology is a branch of philosophy that investigates the foundations and theory of value. It asks what value is, how value properties are constituted, and how value judgments are justified. The field considers value as a basic phenomenon and explores questions about the status of value properties such as goodness, beauty, and usefulness, as well as how such properties are to be understood and measured. It addresses the ontology of value (whether values exist independently of observers), the epistemology of valuing (how we know what is valuable), and the methodology of value theory (how to construct and evaluate value theories).

Metaaxiology distinguishes itself from axiology by focusing on meta-level questions about value itself rather than simply cataloging valuable things. It overlaps with metaethics but extends beyond moral questions to include aesthetic, epistemic, and other evaluative domains. Core issues include whether values are objective or subjective, intrinsic or instrumental, and how value accounts relate to scientific naturalism. It also investigates how value hierarchies are justified, how cultural and individual differences in valuation are to be understood, and how evaluative language functions across contexts. The field surveys various approaches, including realist, constructivist, and relativist positions, as well as expressivist analyses of evaluative terms and hybrid theories that mix elements.

The term metaaxiology is used variably in philosophical literature; some writers treat it as a subfield of axiology or metaethics, while others regard it as a distinct domain dedicated to the theory of value. It provides a framework for comparing theories of value across moral, aesthetic, and instrumental dimensions and for clarifying the assumptions underlying normative theories.