The problem of epistemically irrelevant causal factors is an epistemological phenomenon that occurs when a person becomes aware of some non-epistemic, causal factor that threatens to adversely influence her present belief, yet this factor is irrelevant to her deliberation concerning that belief. While the problem itself is apparently relatively widespread, very few have given it a detailed analysis. This thesis is one attempt to improve that. The first part, and the bulk, of this thesis is an analysis and explanation of what exactly the problem is and how it differs from nearby, related epistemological phenomena. The second part is my attempt at providing a meaningful solution to the problem such that one can remain justified in one’s beliefs despite becoming aware of an epistemically irrelevant causal factor.
","abstract_html":"<p>The problem of epistemically irrelevant causal factors is an epistemological phenomenon that occurs when a person becomes aware of some non-epistemic, causal factor that threatens to adversely influence her present belief, yet this factor is irrelevant to her deliberation concerning that belief. While the problem itself is apparently relatively widespread, very few have given it a detailed analysis. This thesis is one attempt to improve that. The first part, and the bulk, of this thesis is an analysis and explanation of what exactly the problem is and how it differs from nearby, related epistemological phenomena. The second part is my attempt at providing a meaningful solution to the problem such that one can remain justified in one’s beliefs despite becoming aware of an epistemically irrelevant causal factor.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["McAllister, Derek L."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts in Philosophy (MA)","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Lyons, Jack","Funkhouser, Eric M."],"advisors":["Senor, Thomas D."],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-07-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-07-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T00:58:26Z","subjects":["Philosophy","religion and theology","Epistemology","Etiology","Evolutionary debunking","Irrelevant factors","Psychology of belief","Religious beliefs","Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/1299","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Lyons, Jack","Funkhouser, Eric M."]},{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Senor, Thomas D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["McAllister, Derek L."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2015"]},{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2017-09-29T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts in Philosophy (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Philosophy","religion and theology","Epistemology","Etiology","Evolutionary debunking","Irrelevant factors","Psychology of belief","Religious beliefs","Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/1299"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The problem of epistemically irrelevant causal factors is an epistemological phenomenon that occurs when a person becomes aware of some non-epistemic, causal factor that threatens to adversely influence her present belief, yet this factor is irrelevant to her deliberation concerning that belief. While the problem itself is apparently relatively widespread, very few have given it a detailed analysis. This thesis is one attempt to improve that. The first part, and the bulk, of this thesis is an analysis and explanation of what exactly the problem is and how it differs from nearby, related epistemological phenomena. The second part is my attempt at providing a meaningful solution to the problem such that one can remain justified in one’s beliefs despite becoming aware of an epistemically irrelevant causal factor.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Problem of Epistemically Irrelevant Causal Factors"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Lyons, Jack","Funkhouser, Eric M."],"dc:contributor.advisor":["Senor, Thomas D."],"dc:creator":["McAllister, Derek L."],"dc:date":["2015"],"dc:date.available":["2017-09-29T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The problem of epistemically irrelevant causal factors is an epistemological phenomenon that occurs when a person becomes aware of some non-epistemic, causal factor that threatens to adversely influence her present belief, yet this factor is irrelevant to her deliberation concerning that belief. While the problem itself is apparently relatively widespread, very few have given it a detailed analysis. This thesis is one attempt to improve that. The first part, and the bulk, of this thesis is an analysis and explanation of what exactly the problem is and how it differs from nearby, related epistemological phenomena. The second part is my attempt at providing a meaningful solution to the problem such that one can remain justified in one’s beliefs despite becoming aware of an epistemically irrelevant causal factor.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/1299"],"dc:subject":["Philosophy","religion and theology","Epistemology","Etiology","Evolutionary debunking","Irrelevant factors","Psychology of belief","Religious beliefs","Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion"],"dc:title":["The Problem of Epistemically Irrelevant Causal Factors"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts in Philosophy (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T00:58:26Z"}