Uploaded August 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 second ago
Provisionality is the quality of being provisional in our judgements – that is, of being capable of changing them in the light of new experience. It may seem an obvious concept, particularly for those in the sciences, but in fact the word is rarely used, and the quality is often taken for granted rather than explicitly cultivated. As the video explains, provisionality involves both having a critical awareness of the limitations of the justification of your beliefs (through scepticism), and also having awareness of alternatives (through optionality). Optionality can be cultivated through the arts, or through any other activity that broadens our experience and available meaning.
This recorded Zoom session consists of a 15 minute talk on Provisionality by Robert M. Ellis, followed by 15 minutes of discussion with the audience. This is one of the regular meetings of the Middle Way Network: for more information on this please see middlewaysociety.org/events/middle-way-network/.
Provisionality is the quality of being provisional in our judgements – that is, of being capable of changing them in the light of new experience. It may seem an obvious concept, particularly for those in the sciences, but in fact the word is rarely used, and the quality is often taken for granted rather than explicitly cultivated. As the video explains, provisionality involves both having a critical awareness of the limitations of the justification of your beliefs (through scepticism), and also having awareness of alternatives (through optionality). Optionality can be cultivated through the arts, or through any other activity that broadens our experience and available meaning.
This recorded Zoom session consists of a 15 minute talk on Provisionality by Robert M. Ellis, followed by 15 minutes of discussion with the audience. This is one of the regular meetings of the Middle Way Network: for more information on this please see middlewaysociety.org/events/middle-way-network/.
