The recording of Anna Mahtani’s Inaugural Lecture titled ‘From Probabilities to Decisions’ is now online on the LSE YouTube channel.

The idea of probabilities – and in particular ‘degrees of belief’ or ‘credences’ – is prevalent. It is used by scientists, economists and political theorists, and it plays a central role in policy choice: in deciding whether to carry out a particular health-care policy for example, the process for reaching a decision will almost certainly involve a calculation of credences. In this lecture Anna Mahtani will use an insight from the philosophy of language to argue that the objects of credence are ‘opaque’: in other words, it matters how the relevant object is described or designated. There are wide-ranging implications for welfare distribution and policy choice, and in this lecture she will explore some of these implications.

Speakers:
Professor Anna Mahtani

Chair:
Professor Alex Voorhoeve

Link to the recording.