croyances

Croyances is the French term for beliefs. In philosophy, psychology, and sociology, a belief is a mental state in which a proposition is accepted as true. Croyances cover religious, political, cultural, scientific, and everyday convictions, and may refer to both evaluative judgments and factual propositions. The term is common in francophone discourse for discussing how groups and individuals organize their understanding of the world.

Formation: Croyances arise from perception, experience, education, and socialization. Cognitive processes such as inference, as well as biases like confirmation bias, influence which propositions are accepted. Social factors—family, institutions, media—transmit and reinforce croyances. Certainty levels vary, with some croyances held firmly even in the face of contrary evidence, while others are tentative.

Functions: They provide meaning and coherence, guide behavior and decisions, support identity, and simplify complex realities. They shape attitudes toward risk, authority, and change. Variation: Beliefs differ across individuals and cultures, including religious, secular, and everyday assumptions about causality, morality, and social norms.

Change and critique: Beliefs can change with new information or social transformation. Scholars study how croyances are formed and sustained, the role of culture and power, and the limits of justification. Distinctions among belief, knowledge, and faith remain central to debates about rationality and evidence.

See also: belief, epistemology, rationality, faith, worldview, sociology of knowledge.