Viewpoint Diversity and Its Epistemic Benefits
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4990350 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Adam Gjesdal (0000-0001-7973-9163, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Publication date | 2025-03-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophy Compass (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1747-9991 • E-ISSN: 1747-9991 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/phc3.70021 |
| OpenAlex | W4408383525 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 41 |
Groups are viewpoint diverse when their members think about the same problem in different ways. There exists a multi-disciplinary literature arguing that viewpoint diversity improves a group's epistemic outcomes. But within that literature, the concept of a viewpoint goes unanalyzed. This paper builds on work by the political philosopher Gerald Gaus to develop an analysis of a problem-specific viewpoint. It considers two cases where viewpoint diversity improves decision-making quality. In the first case, group members all share criteria for evaluating solutions to their problem, such that all agree on which solution is "best" when they find it. In the second case, group members do not share these criteria because the evaluation of solutions is essentially contestable. Although the existing evidence is not decisive, we have reason to believe that viewpoint diversity, when properly harnessed, improves epistemic outcomes in both cases
Diversity (politics · Epistemology · Sociology · Anthropology · Feminist Epistemology and Gender Studies · Gender Diversity and Inequality · Philosophy · Psychology
The Difference
Groups of diverse problem solvers can outperform groups of high-ability problem solvers
The Epistemic Benefit of Transient Diversity
Gender-diverse teams produce more novel and higher-impact scientific ideas
The Epistemology of Democracy
The preeminence of ethnic diversity in scientific collaboration
Deliberative Democracy and the Epistemic Benefits of Diversity
A Theory of Justice
Democratic Reason
The Diversity Gap
Is there an epistemic advantage to being oppressed
Objectivity and Diversity
Race and Epistemologies of Ignorance
What Differences Make a Difference
The Essential Tension
Value of cognitive diversity in science
Diversity, Not Randomness, Trumps Ability
The Diversity-Ability Trade-Off in Scientific Problem Solving
Diversity, Ability, and Expertise in Epistemic Communities
Epistemic Landscapes and the Division of Cognitive Labor
Diversity, Trust, and Conformity
Social Contract Theory for a Diverse World
Ideological Asymmetries and the Essence of Political Psychology
Political Polarization in the American Public
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |