Citizendia

This article is about the mental state. For other uses, see Doubt (disambiguation).

Doubt, a status between belief and disbelief, involves uncertainty or distrust or lack of sureness of a fact, an action, a motive, or a decision. Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a Proposition or Premise to be true Uncertainty is a term used in subtly different ways in a number of fields including Philosophy, Statistics, Economics, Finance, Insurance Distrust is a Formal way of not trusting any one Party too much in a situation of grave Risk or deep Doubt. Doubt brings into question some notion of a perceived "reality", and may involve delaying relevant action out of concerns for mistakes or faults. Reality, in everyday usage means "the state of things as they actually exist"

The term "to doubt" can also mean "to question one's circumstances and life-experience". A question may be either a linguistic expression used to make a request for Information, or else the request itself made by such an expression Personal life (or everyday life or human existence) is the course of an individual Human 's life especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices Experience as a general concept comprises Knowledge of or skill in or Observation of some thing or some event gained through involvement in or

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Impact on society

Doubt sometimes tends to call on reason. Reason involves the ability to think understand and draw Conclusions in an Abstract way as in Human thinking It may encourage people to hesitate before acting, and/or to apply more rigorous methods. Procrastination is a type of behavior which is characterized by deferment of actions or tasks to a later time Rigour or rigor (see spelling differences) has a number of meanings in relation to intellectual life and discourse Doubt may have particular importance as leading towards disbelief.

Politics, ethics and law, faced with important decisions that often determine the course of individual life, place great importance on doubt, and often foster elaborate adversarial processes to carefully sort through all the evidence to come to a decision. Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Ethics is a major branch of Philosophy, encompassing right conduct and good life Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Personal life (or everyday life or human existence) is the course of an individual Human 's life especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices An adversarial process is one that supports conflicting one-sided positions held by individuals groups or entire societies as inputs into the conflict resolution situation typically

One view regards the scientific method, and to a degree all of science, as entirely motivated by doubt: rather than accepting existing theories, scientists express systematic or habitual doubt (skepticism) and devise experiments to test (and, optimally, to disprove) any theory. Scientific method refers to bodies of Techniques for investigating phenomena Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding Habits are habituated routines of behavior that are repeated regularly tend to occur Subconsciously and tend to occur without directly thinking consciously In ordinary usage skepticism or scepticism ( Greek 'σκέπτομαι' skeptomai, to look about to consider see also spelling differences In scientific inquiry an experiment ( Latin: Ex- periri, "to try out" is a method of investigating particular types of research questions or Some commentators see technology as simply the expansion of the experiments to a wider user-base, which takes real risks with it. Technology is a broad concept that deals with a Species ' usage and knowledge of Tools and Crafts and how it affects a species' ability to control and adapt Risk is a Concept that denotes the precise probability of specific eventualities Users may no longer doubt the applicability of the theory in play, but there remain doubts about how it interacts with the real world. The process of technology-transfer stages exploitation of science to ensure the minimization of doubt and danger. Technology transfer is the process of sharing of skills knowledge technologies methods of manufacturing samples of manufacturing and facilities among industries universities governments

Psychology

Psychoanalysts often attribute doubt, which they may interpret as a symptom of a phobia emanating from the ego, to childhood, when the ego develops. Psychoanalysis is a body of ideas developed by Austrian physician Sigmund Freud and his followers which is devoted to the study of human psychological functioning and behavior Phobias Phobias (in the clinical meaning of the term are the most common form of Anxiety disorders An American study by the National Institute of Mental Health Id, ego, and super-ego are the three parts of the " Psychic apparatus " defined in Sigmund Freud 's structural model of Child article read through the various talk pages for the debate -- it's been put on and removed twice Childhood experiences, these traditions maintain, can plant doubt about one's abilities and even about one's very identity. The influence of parents and other influential figures often carries heavy connotations onto the resultant self-image of the child/ego, with doubts often included in such self-portrayals. A person's self image is the mental picture generally of a kind that is quite resistant to change that depicts not only details that are potentially available to objective Id, ego, and super-ego are the three parts of the " Psychic apparatus " defined in Sigmund Freud 's structural model of

Cognitive mental as well as more spiritual approaches abound in response to the wide variety of potential causes for doubt — sometimes seen as a "Bad Thing". Cognition is a concept used in different ways by different disciplines but is generally accepted to mean the process of awareness or thought Spirituality, in a narrow sense concerns itself with matters of the Spirit, a concept closely tied to religious belief and Faith, a transcendent reality Behavioral therapy — in which a person systematically asks his own mind if the doubt has any real basis — uses rational, Socratic methods. Behaviour therapy is a form of Psychotherapy used to treat depression, Anxiety disorders, Phobias, and other forms of Psychopathology MIND ( Moving In New Directions) (est 1975 is an alternative education high school in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Socratic Method (or Method of Elenchus or Socratic Debate) named after the Classical Greek philosopher Socrates, is a form of Behavioral therapists claim that any constant confirmation leads to emotional detachment from the original doubt. This method contrasts to those of say, the Buddhist faith, which involve a more esoteric approach to doubt and inaction. Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices Buddhism sees all doubt as a negative attachment to one's perceived past and future. PAST (short for Polska Akcyjna Spółka Telefoniczna, Polish Telephone Joint-stock Company) was a Polish telephone operator in the period between World War I The future is commonly understood to contain all events that have yet to occur To let go of the personal history of one's life (affirming this release every day in meditation) plays a central role in releasing the doubts — developed in and attached to — that history. History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology Meditation is a mental discipline by which one attempts to get beyond the conditioned "thinking" mind into a deeper state of relaxation or awareness Through much spiritual exertion, one can (if desired) dispel doubt, and live "only in the present". The present is the Time that is perceived directly not as a recollection or a speculation

Psychopathology

Many people associate "excessive" doubt with obsessive-compulsive disorder, sometimes nicknamed a "disease of doubt". Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD is a Chronic Anxiety disorder most commonly characterized by obsessive Distressing Intrusive thoughts ((fact}}

Philosophy

Anything that is questionable or causes doubt, especially an argument or a claim.

Branches of philosophy like logic devote much effort to distinguish the dubious, the probable and the certain. Logic is the study of the principles of valid demonstration and Inference. Much of illogic rests on dubious assumptions, dubious data or dubious conclusions, with rhetoric, whitewashing, and deception playing their accustomed roles. Rhetoric has had many definitions no simple definition can do it justice To Whitewash is to gloss over or cover up vices crimes or to exonerate by means of a perfunctory investigation or through biased presentation of data Deception (also called beguilement or subterfuge) is the act of convincing another to believe Information that is not true or not the whole truth as in

Religion

The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio.
The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio. Doubting Thomas is a term that is used to describe someone who will refuse to believe something without direct physical personal evidence a Skeptic. Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, usually just known as Caravaggio, (28 September 1571 – 18 July 1610 was an Italian Artist active in Rome

Doubt that god(s) exist forms the basis of agnosticism — possibly definable as the belief that one cannot determine the existence of god(s) — and atheism, which can entail either not believing in god(s) or believing that no god(s) exist(s). Agnosticism ( Greek: α- a-, without + γνώσις gnōsis, knowledge after Gnosticism) is the philosophical view that the Atheism

By extension, doubt as to the existence or intentions of the Christian God applies to doubt concerning the Christian Bible as well, bringing into question its alleged status as the word of God, and propounding alternative explanations (such as a work of mythology like Homer's ancient Greek epics the Iliad and the Odyssey). The term "Godhead" The term Godhead is a term denoting deity or divinity Etymology According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word bible is from Latin biblia, traced from the same word through Medieval Latin and Late Latin The word mythology (from the Greek grc μυθολογία mythología, meaning "a story-telling a legendary lore" Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the The Iliad ( Greek: Ἰλιάς (Ancient Ιλιάδα (Modern is together with the Odyssey, one of two ancient The Odyssey ( Greek: Ὀδύσσεια or Odússeia) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. Doubt of a religion itself brings into question the truth of its set of beliefs.

Christians often debate doubt in the contexts of salvation and eventual redemption in an afterlife. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings In Theology, salvation can mean three related things being saved from or Liberation from something such as Suffering or the punishment of AfterLife is a film drama set in Scotland directed by Alison Peebles made in 2003 about an ambitious Scottish journalist forced to choose between This issue has become particularly important in the Protestant version of the Christian faith, which requires only acceptance of Jesus as saviour and intermediary with God for a positive outcome. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. Soteriology is the branch of theology that deals with Salvation. The debate appears less important in most other religions and ethical traditions. A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos Ethics is a branch of Philosophy dealing with right and wrong in human behavior

Spirituality

In the context of spirituality, individuals may see doubt as the opposite of faith. Spirituality, in a narrow sense concerns itself with matters of the Spirit, a concept closely tied to religious belief and Faith, a transcendent reality Faith is a Belief in the trustworthiness of an Idea. Formal usage of the word "faith" is usually reserved for concepts of Religion, as in If faith represents a compulsion to follow a path, doubt may block that particular path. People use doubts and faith every day to choose the life path that they follow; for example: “I doubt that laziness will help me achieve my goals. Choice consists of the mental process of Thinking involved with the process of judging the merits of multiple options and selecting ”

Doubt can serve to create individual illusions to shield the vision of an unpleasant outcome. An illusion is a distortion of the senses revealing how the Brain normally organizes and interprets sensory stimulation VisiCorp 's VisiOn was a short-lived but influential Graphical user interface -based Operating environment program for IBM PC compatible "I doubt anyone will catch me if I rob this store. " Depending upon the energy put into the doubt, when used in this way, doubt itself has little impact on events and merely blocks the individual from seeing possibilities.

See also

References

Further reading

Dictionary

doubt

-verb

  1. To lack confidence in; to disbelieve, question, or suspect.

-noun

  1. Uncertainty, disbelief.
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