ACTION-BASED CAUSAL REASONING

摘要

In this paper we present a causal theory based on an interventionist conception of causality, i.e., a preference to select causes among a set of actions which an agent has the ability to perform or not to perform (free will). The most interesting proposals encountered in the literature, in nonmonotonic reasoning, all revolve around the ordered notion of similarity, abnormality, preference etc... but do not provide a full-fledged solution to the problem of the concrete definition of this order. In our approach we relate the notion of action to norms (what is normally the case when an action is undertaken, what is normally the outcome of that action) and considering reasonable assumptions, we show the existence and uniqueness of the set of voluntary causes for an observed effect (explanation problem). Moreover, the approach advocated in this paper handles ramifications correctly. [References: 22]