Exploring Inductive Risk

Abstract

The introductory chapter provides an overview of the book Exploring Inductive Risk . It introduces the concept of inductive risk, briefly traces the history of the argument from inductive risk, and sets out the book’s chapters in terms of four themes. The first part, “Weighing Inductive Risk,” illustrates the concept of inductive risk and the judgments involved in weighing different sorts of errors. The chapters in the second part, “Evading Inductive Risk,” examine proposals by critics who argue that the value judgments associated with inductive risk should be made by citizens and policymakers, not by scientists. The third section, “The Breadth of Inductive Risk,” illustrates the wide variety of decision points throughout scientific practice where considerations of inductive risk are relevant. The book’s fourth section, “Exploring the Limits of Inductive Risk,” considers whether it still makes sense to apply the label of inductive risk to such a broad array of phenomena.