Reason To Believe
Charles Peirce, the founder of American pragmatism, explains the ‘Theory of Scientific Method’ in American Philosophy Book 7 to explain how beliefs are formed. According to him, the action of thought is excited by the irritation of doubt and ceases when belief is attained. Hence, the production of belief is the sole function of thought.
While our thoughts relax when belief is reached, the rest is only momentary. When we encounter other facts that don’t confirm our beliefs, new doubts are created, leading to further enquiry. After the enquiry or investigation, we form a new belief, and then again, our thoughts come to rest.
The process of facts-doubt-inquiry-belief can be shown in the following diagram.
It is important to understand that our beliefs can be true or false. The truth of a belief depends on the depth of inquiry, transparency in the methodology adopted for inquiry, and its willingness to be open to scrutiny by other people. When inquiry is superficial, beliefs are usually false and based on emotions. However, when belief is based on thorough inquiry, they are based on reason and are closer to the truth. Critical thinking, subject knowledge, and experience are needed to investigate the matter thoroughly and discover the truth.
Why people believe fallacies
It is a fact that many people around the world believe in fallacies despite being educated. For instance, “three-quarters of Americans believe in at least one phenomenon that defies the laws of science, including psychic healing (55 percent), extrasensory perception (41 percent), haunted houses (37 percent), and ghosts (32 percent)—which also means that some people believe in houses haunted by ghosts without believing in ghosts”. [1]1
It is always easy to believe in anything if everyone around you believes in the same. A belief is inculcated since childhood when we have no knowledge of science and no ability to reason. Hence, beliefs come naturally to us. By the time we grow up and develop the ability to think logically, these beliefs have already taken deep root in our minds, and it becomes challenging to uproot them.
Unlike belief, which is simple and provides certainty, scientific knowledge is complex, uncertain and fallible. Moreover, we never learn in our schools and colleges the scientific evidence to disapprove of the existence of God, ghosts, spirits, or the tenets of the religion. As a result, we never know the flip side of these beliefs and thus continue to believe in such fallacies.
People choose their beliefs to avoid uncertainty. Hence, no belief is needed when there is certainty, as you are sure about it. You simply know it with 100% confidence. These are the matters of fact for you, which is beyond any doubt. For instance, you don’t believe that 2+2 =4 or that Earth revolves around the Sun. Likewise, when CCTV footage of a crime, like murder or theft, is available, there is no need to rely on the statements of witnesses and incriminate a person based on the credibility of the witnesses or these depositions. However, when no direct evidence is available, we have to rely on the statements of the witnesses and decide on the issue based on our belief in the witnesses and, thus, their statements.
Since there are still many areas in life where science has not been able to develop a deeper understanding of the issue and doubt still persists in such areas, the gap is filled by faith and beliefs. For instance, the Big Bang theory about the creation of the universe is still not convincing as it fails to explain why the Big Bang happened and what existed before the Big Bang. Hence, many still believe in the theory of creation about the universe according to their Scriptures. Similarly, there is no scientific proof that honesty is the best policy. Hence, faith is needed to follow the path of honesty.
The more rational and scientific knowledge created in the world, the lesser the role of beliefs in guiding humanity will be. Even at the individual level, the more knowledgeable a person is, the lesser he has to rely on beliefs to sail through life.
Reason to Believe
When a belief is based on reason, it is called reasonable belief. It is reasonable to believe something for which you have substantial shreds of evidence, even if they are not irrefutable. A “reasonable belief” is based on what the believer thinks is reasonable. Accordingly, there are no objectively reasonable beliefs since what looks reasonable to one person may not appear so to another person.
Our ability to reason depends on our knowledge and skill to reason. Some people may easily believe an idea because they are uneducated and uninformed and not intelligent enough to understand the logic and evidence behind the belief. They may also easily believe an idea because they are biased for or against it. While biases can be tackled by seeking the opinion of a large number of people who are unrelated to the issue at hand or not related to the people involved, the knowledge aspect can be tackled by developing critical thinking and acquiring the subject knowledge.
For example, today, we have reason to believe that the Earth is spherical and spins on its axis and around the Sun without being able to observe it. We can observe this only if we are stationed millions of miles away from Earth at a stationary place and see the Earth through sophisticated instruments. However, we still believe it because we can see the day and night cycle every 24 hours and watch the spinning sky at night. Moreover, we can also converse with the people who live in different parts of the world through WhatsApp or telephonically and know that when it is day here in India, and the Sun is visible, there is night in America, and they can’t see the Sun. All this is possible when the Earth is round and spinning on its own axis.
However, the cardinals at Galileo’s trial did not find it reasonable to the Heliocentric theory, where Galileo proposed that the Earth revolves around the Sun. The Cardinals insisted that they had reason to believe that the Earth was stationary because they couldn’t feel it moving. Hence, it was reasonable for the cardinals to believe that the Earth was stationary. Instead, they believed in the Bible, where Earth was said to be at the centre of the universe.
Hence, on June 22, 1633, the Church handed down the following order: “We pronounce, judge, and declare, that you, the said Galileo… have rendered yourself vehemently suspected by this Holy Office of heresy, that is, of having believed and held the doctrine (which is false and contrary to the Holy and Divine Scriptures) that the sun is the center of the world, and that it does not move from east to west, and that the earth does move, and is not the center of the world.” They accordingly ordered penalty: “We order that by a public edict, the book of Dialogues of Galileo Galilei be prohibited, and We condemn thee to the prison of this Holy Office during Our will and pleasure; and as a salutary penance We enjoin on thee that for the space of three years, thou shalt recite once a week the Seven Penitential Psalms.” Galileo agreed not to teach the heresy anymore and spent the rest of his life under house arrest. It took more than 300 years for the Church to admit that Galileo was right and to clear his name of heresy. [2]2
Thus, our reason to believe depends on our ability to reason, which has to be learned. Without adequate knowledge of the subject, we may have to rely on our commonsense and sensual perception, which can lead us to the wrong conclusion as our senses have limited ability to perceive the world.
Reason to Believe and Reasonable Belief
Reason to Believe
A person is said to have “reason to believe” a thing if he has sufficient cause to believe that thing but not otherwise. Reason to believe implies having a sufficient basis or justification for holding a particular belief or suspicion. So, if you reason to believe something, your belief must be based on rational or logical reason, facts, evidence, or circumstances to think or believe something is true or likely.
Reason to believe thus implies:
- Probability: Based on the available facts, materials, and reasons, any reasonable person would conclude that there is a reasonable chance or likelihood that something is true or will happen.
- Suspicion: Based on the evidence, information, or circumstances, any reasonable person forms an intuition, suspicion, or hunch to believe something and not otherwise.
- Evidence: Sufficient evidence or facts to support a particular belief or conclusion.
- Plausibility: A reasonable or plausible explanation or assumption based on the available data.
Thus, the reason to believe:
- Focuses on the existence of a reason or basis for believing something
- Emphasizes the presence of evidence, facts, or circumstances that support a belief
- Implies a degree of certainty or confidence in the belief
The following are some good examples of reasons to believe.
| Assertion | Basis |
| I have reason to believe that John is lying because he’s avoiding eye contact. | Behavioural evidence (avoiding eye contact, fidgeting) |
| I have reason to believe that the company is struggling financially because of the recent layoffs and budget cuts.” | Circumstantial evidence (layoffs, budget cuts) |
| I have reason to believe that it will rain today because of the dark clouds and forecast.” | Observational evidence (dark clouds) and expert opinion (forecast) |
| I have reason to believe that John is guilty of evading taxes since his duplicate notebook recovered during the search shows a high volume of unrecorded transactions. | Documentary Evidence: Recovered notebook of unrecorded sale |
| I have reason to believe that Mr X has murdered Y because Mr A has seen him going into the house of X with a pistol in his hand. | Personal Evidence: Statement of witness |
| I have reason to believe that drugs are kept in the godown of Mr X since Mr Y, who is an employee of Mr X, has given me this information. | Specific Intelligence |
Reasonable Belief
Reasonable belief focuses on the rationality or justification of the belief itself. It emphasizes that the belief is logical, sensible, and not arbitrary or capricious and implies a degree of objectivity and sound judgment. The following are some examples of reasonable belief.
| Belief | Basis |
| “It’s reasonable to believe that a person will act in their own self-interest.” | General human behaviour and psychology |
| “It’s reasonable to believe that a company will try to maximize profits.” | General business principles and goals |
| “It’s reasonable to believe that an injured person will seek medical attention.” | General human behaviour and response to injury |
There are many similarities between reason to believe and a reasonable belief, but they are not the same.
| Reason to believe | Reasonable belief |
| Focuses on the reasons like specific evidence, circumstances or basis for the belief | Focuses on the rationality and justification of the belief itself |
| Implies a degree of certainty, | Implies a degree of objectivity and sound judgment. |
| About having a basis for a belief | About the belief being rational and justified. |
| Based on specific evidence or circumstances | Based on general principles, human behaviour, or logical assumptions. |
In conclusion, having a reason to believe and reasonable belief are essential concepts in understanding how we form beliefs and make decisions. A reason to believe focuses on the existence of a reason or basis for believing something, while a reasonable belief emphasizes the rationality and justification of the belief itself. Both concepts are crucial in various aspects of life, including science, law, and personal decision-making. By understanding the distinction between reason to believe and reasonable belief, we can cultivate critical thinking, sound judgment, and informed decision-making. Ultimately, this enables us to navigate complex situations and make more informed choices.
- Steven Pinker, Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters ↩︎
- Galileo goes on trial for heresy, History, URL: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/galileo-is-accused-of-heresy ↩︎
