Uncovering deterministic causal structures: a Boolean approach

Synthese 170 (1):71-96 (2009)
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Abstract

While standard procedures of causal reasoning as procedures analyzing causal Bayesian networks are custom-built for (non-deterministic) probabilistic struc- tures, this paper introduces a Boolean procedure that uncovers deterministic causal structures. Contrary to existing Boolean methodologies, the procedure advanced here successfully analyzes structures of arbitrary complexity. It roughly involves three parts: first, deterministic dependencies are identified in the data; second, these dependencies are suitably minimalized in order to eliminate redundancies; and third, one or—in case of ambiguities—more than one causal structure is assigned to the minimalized deterministic dependencies.

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Michael Baumgartner
Bergen University

Citations of this work

Grounding in the image of causation.Jonathan Schaffer - 2016 - Philosophical Studies 173 (1):49-100.
Mechanistic Constitution in Neurobiological Explanations.Jens Harbecke - 2010 - International Studies in the Philosophy of Science 24 (3):267-285.
Boolean Difference-Making: A Modern Regularity Theory of Causation.Michael Baumgartner & Christoph Falk - unknown - British Journal for the Philosophy of Science:axz047.

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References found in this work

Beginning Logic.Sarah Stebbins - 1965 - London, England: Hackett Publishing.
Causal Asymmetries.Daniel M. Hausman - 1998 - New York: Cambridge University Press.
The Cement of the Universe.John Earman & J. L. Mackie - 1976 - Philosophical Review 85 (3):390.

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