What is the Difference Between Truth and Validity?

Truth and validity are two distinct concepts related to arguments and their quality. Here are the key differences between them:

• Truth: Truth refers to the accuracy or falsity of a statement or premise. It is a property of premises and conclusions, and a statement is considered true if it corresponds with reality or the facts. Truth is tied to personal experience, investigation, and evidence.
• Validity: Validity is a property of arguments, specifically deductive arguments. It refers to the logical relationship between the premises and the conclusion. An argument is considered valid if the truth of its premises would guarantee the truth of its conclusion. Validity is not tied to personal experience, investigation, or evidence. It is a formal characteristic that applies only to deductive arguments.

Some important points to consider:

1. An argument can be valid even if its conclusion or premises are false.
2. The threshold for truth is measured as absolute certainty, while the threshold for validity is measured using the entire continuum of certainty.
3. Truth is tied to self-esteem, and resolving arguments related to truth require a win or lose environment.
4. Validity is tied to the information available, and the goal in arguing validity is to find out which position in an argument is the most valid one at the time. The most valid position might change as new information becomes available.

In summary, truth is a property of statements that indicates their accuracy or correspondence with reality, while validity is a property of arguments that indicates the logical relationship between premises and conclusion.

Comparative Table: Truth vs Validity

Truth and validity are two distinct qualities of an argument that help determine whether the argument is acceptable or not. Here is a table summarizing the differences between truth and validity:

In summary, truth is concerned with the accuracy of a statement, while validity is concerned with the logical structure of an argument. An argument can be valid even if its premises or conclusion are not true, as long as the conclusion follows logically from the premises. On the other hand, a true statement is one that accurately corresponds with reality.