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When local causes are more explanatorily useful

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2023

Pierrick Bourrat Open the ORCID record for Pierrick Bourrat [Opens in a new window]
Pierrick Bourrat*
Affiliation:
Department of Philosophy, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, Australia Department of Philosophy & Charles Perkins Centre, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, Australia p.bourrat@gmail.com, pierrickbourrat.com
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Abstract

Madole & Harden plead for better integration of causal knowledge of different depths to understand complex human traits. Classically, local causes – a particular type of shallow causes – are considered less useful than more generalisable causes, giving a false impression that the latter causes are more useful and desirable. Using a simple example, I show that sometimes the contrary is true.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 46 , 2023 , e185
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press

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References

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