factual relativism

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   The view that scientific facts about the world are not absolute, but are relative to…

   The view that scientific facts about the world are not absolute, but are relative to historical eras and to evolving scientific theories.

2. 2

   The claim that the world itself, or the facts about the world, are different for…

   The claim that the world itself, or the facts about the world, are different for different individuals, or groups, or cultures.

   • factual relativism ... attempts to argue that the world itself, or the “facts,” are different for different individuals (groups, cultures). Hence truth, too, is relative.
   • Factual relativism, according to which the facts ... may differ across perspectives — that is, different facts obtain relative to different perspectives.
   • Whereas moral relativism deals with matters of value, cognitive relativism deals with matters of fact (although sharp distinctions may at times be difficult to make) (Hollis and Lukes 1982, p. 2).

The neighborhood

• synonymcognitive relativism