Moral Encroachment in Belief Formation: Balancing Evidence and Ethical Stakes
Location
PANEL: Environmental & Moral Considerations Through Different Perspectives
CELA Moffett
Moderator: Karen Reynolds
Document Type
Presentation - Open Access
Start Date
4-25-2025 3:00 PM
End Date
4-25-2025 4:00 PM
Abstract
Belief formation is often viewed as a process guided solely by evidential support, yet some philosophers argue that moral considerations also play a role in epistemic justification. Moral encroachment challenges the traditional evidentialist view by suggesting that the justification of a belief can depend on ethical concerns. This research project examines one form of epistemic risk – the tradeoff between seeking truth and avoiding error – and evaluates the competing frameworks of radical and moderate moral encroachment (RME and MME). The moderate approach holds that moral stakes influence evidential thresholds, requiring stronger justification for beliefs with serious ethical consequences. The radical approach, on the other hand, asserts that moral concerns can override evidential support, making some beliefs impermissible even when well-supported. This research project critiques RME for misplacing moral accountability in the belief’s content, for its impracticality in real-world decision-making, and for its potential to undermine rational inquiry by leading to inconsistent belief regulation. In contrast, MME provides a principled framework that integrates ethical considerations without compromising evidential rigor. By requiring more robust justification in morally sensitive contexts rather than outright rejecting beliefs, MME preserves epistemic integrity while addressing the ethical stakes of belief formation.
Keywords:
Philosophy, Beliefs, Morality, Epistemology
Recommended Citation
Sayani, Ananya, "Moral Encroachment in Belief Formation: Balancing Evidence and Ethical Stakes" (2025). Research Symposium. 12.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/researchsymp/2025/presentations/12
Major
Philosophy
Project Mentor(s)
Todd Ganson, Philosophy
2025
Moral Encroachment in Belief Formation: Balancing Evidence and Ethical Stakes
PANEL: Environmental & Moral Considerations Through Different Perspectives
CELA Moffett
Moderator: Karen Reynolds
Belief formation is often viewed as a process guided solely by evidential support, yet some philosophers argue that moral considerations also play a role in epistemic justification. Moral encroachment challenges the traditional evidentialist view by suggesting that the justification of a belief can depend on ethical concerns. This research project examines one form of epistemic risk – the tradeoff between seeking truth and avoiding error – and evaluates the competing frameworks of radical and moderate moral encroachment (RME and MME). The moderate approach holds that moral stakes influence evidential thresholds, requiring stronger justification for beliefs with serious ethical consequences. The radical approach, on the other hand, asserts that moral concerns can override evidential support, making some beliefs impermissible even when well-supported. This research project critiques RME for misplacing moral accountability in the belief’s content, for its impracticality in real-world decision-making, and for its potential to undermine rational inquiry by leading to inconsistent belief regulation. In contrast, MME provides a principled framework that integrates ethical considerations without compromising evidential rigor. By requiring more robust justification in morally sensitive contexts rather than outright rejecting beliefs, MME preserves epistemic integrity while addressing the ethical stakes of belief formation.
