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axiology

 
Dictionary: ax·i·ol·o·gy   (ăk'sē-ŏl'ə-jē) pronunciation
 
n.

The study of the nature of values and value judgments.

[Greek axios, worth + –LOGY.]

axiological ax'i·o·log'i·cal (-ə-lŏj'ĭ-kəl) adj.
axiologically ax'i·o·log'i·cal·ly adv.
axiologist ax'i·ol'o·gist n.
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Philosophical theory of value. Axiology is the study of value, or goodness, in its widest sense. The distinction is commonly made between intrinsic and extrinsic value — i.e., between that which is valuable for its own sake and that which is valuable only as a means to something else, which itself may be extrinsically or intrinsically valuable. Many different answers have been given to the question "What is intrinsically valuable?" For hedonists, it is pleasure; for pragmatists, it is satisfaction, growth, or adjustment; for Kantians, it is a good will. Pluralists such as G.E. Moore and William David Ross assert that there are any number of intrinsically valuable things. According to subjective theories of value, things are valuable only insofar as they are desired; objective theories hold that there are at least some things that are valuable independently of people's interest in or desire for them. Cognitive theories of value assert that ascriptions of value function logically as statements of fact, whereas noncognitive theories assert that they are merely expressions of feeling (see emotivism) or prescriptions or commendations (see prescriptivism). According to naturalists, expressions such as "intrinsically good" can be analyzed as referring to natural, or non-ethical, properties, such as being pleasant. Moore famously denied this, holding that "good" refers to a simple (unanalyzable) non-natural property. See also fact-value distinction; naturalistic fallacy.

For more information on axiology, visit Britannica.com.

 
WordNet: axiology
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: the study of values and value judgments


 
Wikipedia: Axiology
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Axiology (from Greek ἀξίᾱ, axiā, "value, worth"; and -λογία, -logia) is the study of quality or value. It is often taken to include ethics and aesthetics[1] — philosophical fields that depend crucially on notions of value — and sometimes it is held to lay the groundwork for these fields, and thus to be similar to value theory and meta-ethics. The term was first used in the early 20th century by Paul Lapie, in 1902, and E. von Hartmann, in 1908.[2]

One area in which research continues to be pursued is so-called formal axiology, or the attempt to lay out principles regarding value with mathematical rigor.

The term is also used sometimes for economic value.

References

  1. ^ Random House Unabridged Dictionary. [1]. Dictionary Entry on Axiology.
  2. ^ Samuel L. Hart. Axiology--Theory of Values. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research.

Further reading

  • Hartman (1967). The Structure of Value.  384 pages.

See also




 
 

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Philosophy Dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Axiology" Read more