Work

Tracing truth through conceptual scaling

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Conceptions of truth have shifted considerably, adapting to the changing cultural and intellectual contexts of our time. In this paper we employ a conceptual scaling method (Study 1) to empirically capture laypeople's understanding of truth as spatial relations within individualized conceptual maps. Results indicate that participants most dominantly align with a correspondence notion of truth, followed by authenticity and then coherence. A more fine-grained analysis reveals substantial variation in pluralism: while some participants exhibit a strongly monistic tendency, many others endorse a two-theory blend (most often correspondence and authenticity). In a follow-up study (Study 2) conducted three months later, we confirm the validity and robustness of these findings. Participants' dominant alignment reliably predicts how they apply the concept of truth in a contextualized task.

Source: Cognition

DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2025.106321

Authors: Lukas S. Huber, David-Elias Künstle, Kevin Reuter

Institutions: University of Bern, University of Tübingen, University of Gothenburg

Language: English

Topic: Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics

Subfield: Philosophy

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,910

Funders: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung