valueswhether

Valueswhether is a term used in philosophy of language and ethics to describe a class of evaluative propositions whose truth-conditional assessment depends on a specified set of normative values. The concept arises in discussions of how value judgments interact with factual content and with the truth conditions of sentences containing whether clauses. The name is a portmanteau of values and whether, signaling that value alignment can determine whether a proposition is taken to be true.

In its standard use, a valueswhether proposition takes the form: the acceptability or truth of a proposition p is a function of whether a given value system V endorses certain values. Practically, this means that two agents with different value systems may disagree not just about facts, but about what counts as a legitimate truth-conditional assessment of p. For example, “Whether the policy is just depends on whether one’s values include equality.” Here, the same factual claim may be judged differently depending on the adopter’s normative commitments.

In linguistic and philosophical analysis, valueswhether intersects with value-laden language, normative semantics, and deontic logic. It provides a framework for describing how moral or practical commitments shape judgments, not just through prescriptive claims but via truth-conditions themselves. Critiques point to subjectivity, value pluralism, and the challenge of formalizing multiple, potentially conflicting value systems. See also value-laden semantics, deontic logic, and moral realism.