hypotheticality

Hypotheticality is the quality or state of being hypothetical. It describes statements, questions, or arguments that depend on an assumption rather than established fact. The term is formed from hypothetical, which itself derives from Latin hypotheticus via Greek hypothetikos, with the suffix -ity to indicate a property.

For philosophers, hypotheticality is central to hypothetical reasoning, counterfactuals, and conditional propositions. A proposition P may be said to have high hypotheticality if its truth is contingent on a stipulation or condition, such as "If X were the case, then Y would follow." The study of hypotheticality overlaps with modal logic, possible-world semantics, and the distinction between entailment under assumptions and actual truth conditions.

In science and everyday reasoning, hypotheticality enables scenario analysis and planning. Hypothetical experiments, thought experiments, and simulations rely on assumed premises to explore consequences. Hypotheticality also raises methodological questions about evidential support: how much weight should be given to conclusions drawn from hypothetical scenarios?

In linguistics, the notion relates to mood and evidentiality, with languages sometimes marking hypothetical or counterfactual statements differently from assertive ones. Cognitive psychologists study how people evaluate statements with differing hypotheticality, including the influence on belief formation and decision making.

See also: counterfactuals, hypothetical reasoning, conditional propositions, modal logic.