The role of non-epistemic values in engineering models. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • We argue that non-epistemic values, including moral ones, play an important role in the construction and choice of models in science and engineering. Our main claim is that non-epistemic values are not only "secondary values" that become important just in case epistemic values leave some issues open. Our point is, on the contrary, that non-epistemic values are as important as epistemic ones when engineers seek to develop the best model of a process or problem. The upshot is that models are neither value-free, nor depend exclusively on epistemic values or use non-epistemic values as tie-breakers.

published proceedings

  • Sci Eng Ethics

altmetric score

  • 1

author list (cited authors)

  • Diekmann, S., & Peterson, M.

citation count

  • 18

complete list of authors

  • Diekmann, Sven||Peterson, Martin

publication date

  • March 2013