Socializing Epistemology

Frederick F. Schmitt is professor of philosophy at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and author of Knowledge and Belief (Routledge, 1992).

• Chapter 1 Socializing Epistemology: An Introduction Through Two Sample IssuesChapter 2 Belief-Forming Practices and the SocialChapter 3 Egoism in EpistemologyChapter 4 Speaking of GhostsChapter 5 A Conservative Approach to Social EpistemologyChapter 6 Contrasting Conceptions of Social EpistemologyChapter 7 The Fate of Knowledge in Social Theories of ScienceChapter 8 Good ArgumentsChapter 9 Accuracy in Journalism: An Economic ApproachChapter 10 A More Social EpistemologyChapter 11 Remarks on Collective BeliefChapter 12 The Justification of Group BeliefsChapter 13 Bibliography

Is knowledge produced by rational individuals struggling mightily to unearth the objective facts? Or is it a wholly social product, reflecting interests and social structures, divorced from the world? It is a bit of each—but the trick is to integrate the rational and the social into a seamless whole. This splendid volume goes a very long way in generating a unified outlook.