Open AccessDependent and Independent Reasons
Author(s) -
Robert J. Yanal
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
informal logic
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.368
H-Index - 15
eISSN - 2293-734X
pISSN - 0824-2577
DOI - 10.22329/il.v13i3.2563
Subject(s) - argument (complex analysis) , premises , epistemology , deductive method , mathematical economics , mathematics , law , philosophy , sociology , political science , medicine , social science , qualitative research
How are dependent (or linked) premises to be distinguished from independent (or convergent) premises? Deductive validity, sometimes proposed as a necessary condition for depende'nce, cannot be, for the premises of both inductive and deductive but invalid arguments can be dependent. The question is really this: When do multiple premises for a certain conclusion fonn one argument for that conclusion and when do they form multiple arguments? Answer: Premises are dependent when the evidence they offer for their conclusion is more than the ordinary sum of their probabilities. Ordinary sums are defined in the paper.