tõenduslikkusest

Tõenduslikkus, commonly translated as evidentialism, is a philosophical stance regarding the justification of belief. At its core, evidentialism asserts that a belief is justified if and only if it is based on adequate evidence. This means that holding a belief without sufficient evidence is considered epistemically impermissible or irrational. Proponents of evidentialism argue that the strength of our belief should be proportional to the strength of the evidence supporting it.

This philosophical position can be traced back to thinkers like John Locke and David Hume, who emphasized the importance of reason and experience in forming justified beliefs. In contemporary philosophy of religion, evidentialism is often discussed in the context of religious belief. For example, an evidentialist might argue that believing in God requires sufficient evidence, such as arguments from design or cosmological arguments, to justify such a belief. Conversely, someone who believes in God without such evidence might be accused of irrationality from an evidentialist perspective.

Evidentialism contrasts with other epistemological stances, such as fideism, which holds that faith is independent of or even opposed to reason and evidence. It also differs from pragmatism, which might justify a belief based on its practical consequences rather than solely on its evidential support. The debate surrounding evidentialism often revolves around what constitutes "adequate evidence" and how such evidence should be evaluated.