Defining Skepticism

Here is where I attempt to define skepticism for my audience. I'll be covering a tiny bit of history as well as common usages. 


What is a skeptic? Terms like skepticism, rationality, and critical thinking get dropped around all the time on the internet, often without prior explanation. Since I can see how one can become confused by the plethora of definitions abound, I've decided to make this post about what I mean when I use the term skeptic.


Skepticism's origins lie in ancient Greece. Originally, skepticism referred to a school of thought that believed that any truth claims were impossible to make. Socrates himself said "all I know is that I know nothing". Arguments can be made from this position to support odd (but often interesting) ideas such as solipsism (the idea that ones consciousness is the only one that exists) or the brain in a vat thought experiment. This skepticism, known as philosophical or academic skepticism, raises interesting questions concerning epistemology (the branch of philosophy concerned with how we know what we know) but it's not what I mean when I claim to be a skeptic.








What I'm actually referring to is scientific skepticism. Scientific skepticism is a school of thought that places a heavy emphasis on critical thinking, empiricism, and the scientific method. Evidence along with falsifiable (able to be disproven) theories are key components of skepticism. Skeptics follow the evidence. If somebody tells you something is true, always ask for the evidence. If they can't provide any, you should be extremely skeptical of what they're telling you. Note that this is not cynicism. I hope to never utter the words "you can't ever convince me of x".  Skeptics don't deny the evidence. If the evidence checks out, a true skeptic will always change his mind.


The humility and open-mindeness of this position is what drew me to skepticism. This is why I originally wanted to call this blog "I might be wrong" before finding out this was a popular Radiohead song and every version of that domain was already taken. Although I acknowledge that every philosophical problem is not immediately solved by this worldview, at the very least it has a built-in mechanism for checking itself.


Sadly, this usage of skeptic may not be the most common. There are many "false skeptics" that inappropriately using the term and give scientific skeptics a bad name. I've mentioned cynics but I would also include deniers and conspiracy theorists in this category. I know the colloquial usage of skeptic just means to doubt but these people take doubting too far. Doubting beyond rational and reasonable means encourages sloppy thinking and jaded attitudes. I prefer to call global warming "skeptics" global warming deniers as it seems like no level of consensus or evidence would change their minds. 


That's enough for now. In future posts I'll be covering what skepticism means to me on a national, local, and indivdual level as well as certain philosophical aspects of skepticism such as falsifiability and the principle of charity. 


Enjoy the piglets! 

-Bruce Smith

For a much better introduction to skepticism and the skeptical movement, I recommend reading this brief introduction from the skeptical society's website.