What is the difference between judgments and conclusions?

 

In philosophical logic, the terms "judgment" and "inference" play an important role in the analysis of thought processes. These concepts are often used to describe various aspects of reasoning, but they have significant differences in both their structure and functions. To better understand these differences, it is important to consider thinking as the framework within which judgments and conclusions are formed. Thinking is a complex cognitive process that includes the perception, analysis, synthesis of information, as well as drawing conclusions and making decisions.

It is characterized by the following main features:

- Purposefulness: Thinking always has a purpose, whether it is solving a problem, finding an answer to a question, or achieving a certain result.

- Mediation: Thoughts do not arise directly, but through intermediate links – for example, through associations, analogies or experience.

- Generalization: Thinking allows a person to abstract from specific details and identify common properties of objects and phenomena.

- Intelligence: Thinking involves using intelligence to process information and make decisions.

Thinking is realized through various forms, among which concepts, judgments and conclusions are key. Let's look at each of these forms in more detail.

A concept is a form of thinking that reflects the most common and essential features of objects and phenomena. The concept allows you to select an object from many others and assign it to a specific category. Examples of concepts include words such as "man", "tree", "love".

The main characteristics of the concept:

- Generalization: The concept encompasses a set of homogeneous objects.

- Abstractness: Concepts can exist independently of concrete examples.

- Certainty: Every object or phenomenon related to a given concept has a set of features specific to that concept.

A judgment is a statement about something that can be either true or false. It is a statement containing information about an object or situation. A judgment usually contains a subject (what is being said) and a predicate (what is being stated about the subject). For example: "All people are mortal.", "This book is interesting."

The main characteristics of the judgment:

- Affirmation or Negation: A judgment always contains an affirmation or negation of something about the object.

- Truth or falsity: Each judgment can be evaluated in terms of its relevance to reality.

- Simplicity of structure: Judgments can be simple or complex, but their structure does not involve complex chains of reasoning.

- Context-independent: A judgment in itself is a complete expression of thought and does not require additional data for its understanding.

Inference is the process of deducing new knowledge from already known facts or judgments. This is a logical operation that allows you to move from one statement to another based on the rules of logic. An inference consists of premises (initial judgments) and a conclusion (conclusion).

An example of a simple conclusion:

- Premise 1: All humans are mortal.

- Premise 2: Socrates is a human being.

- Conclusion: Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

The main characteristics of the conclusions:

- Logical conclusion: Inference is a process of transition from one judgment to another based on certain rules of logical thinking.

- Structure: The conclusion includes several stages: the initial data (premises), the rules of inference and the final result (conclusion).

- Dependence on the rules of logic: In order for an inference to be correct, it must follow the rules of logical deduction or induction.

- The big picture: Inference creates new information based on existing knowledge, expanding our understanding of the subject. The dialectic of the relationship of concepts, judgments and conclusions

The dialectical relationship between these forms of thinking lies in the fact that each subsequent form is based on the previous one. Thus, concepts form the basis for making judgments, and judgments, in turn, become the material for conclusions. This process reflects the movement of thought from the general to the particular and back, allowing a person to better understand the world around them and build more complex concepts.

- From concepts to judgments: Concepts provide us with a set of categories and characteristics that are then used to formulate judgments. For example, the concept of "man" allows us to make the judgment "all people are mortal."

- From judgments to conclusions: Judgments act as premises for conclusions. They provide the material on which logical conclusions are based. For example, the judgment "this house is built of brick" may become part of the conclusion about the strength of this house.

- Circular motion: It is important to note that this process is not linear. Often new conclusions lead to a revision of old concepts and judgments. Thus, thinking develops in cycles, constantly enriching itself with new knowledge and correcting old ideas.

The main differences

Now let's look at the main differences between judgment and inference:

Purpose: Judgment is aimed at expressing a specific fact or opinion. Inference is aimed at obtaining new knowledge through logical operations on known data. Form:

The judgment has a simple structure consisting of a subject and a predicate. The conclusion has a complex structure, including premises and conclusion. Process:

The formation of a judgment occurs instantly when we simply state a fact. The process of inference requires time and effort, as it is necessary to analyze the initial information and apply logic to arrive at a conclusion. Function:

Judgments are the building blocks of our thoughts and help us describe the world around us. Conclusions allow us to draw conclusions, discover new connections and patterns, and solve problems. Types:

There are different types of judgments, such as affirmative, negative, conditional, etc. There are two main types of inferences: deductive (when a general principle is applied to a specific case) and inductive (when a generalization is made based on particular cases).

Conclusion

Thus, although judgments and conclusions are closely related to each other, they perform different functions in the process of thinking. Judgments serve as the basis for forming conclusions, which, in turn, allow us to better understand the world around us and make informed decisions.