Ross, Lauren N. and Woodward, James (2016) Koch’s Postulates: An Interventionist Perspective. [Preprint]

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Abstract

We argue that Koch’s postulates are best understood within an interventionist account of causation, in the sense described in Woodward (2003). We show how this treatment helps to resolve interpretive puzzles associated with Koch’s work and how it clarifies the different roles the postulates play in providing useful, yet not universal criteria for disease causation. Our paper is an effort at rational reconstruction; we attempt to show how Koch’s postulates and reasoning make sense and are normatively justified within an interventionist framework and more difficult to understand within alternative frameworks for thinking about causation.

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Item Type:	Preprint
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID Ross, Lauren N. lnr18@pitt.edu Woodward, James jfw@pitt.edu
Keywords:	causation, monocausal model, biology, biomedicine, causal explanation, interventionism, causal reasoning
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Biology General Issues > Causation General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Medicine
Depositing User:	Lauren N. Ross
Date Deposited:	21 May 2016 12:59
Last Modified:	21 May 2016 12:59
Item ID:	12103
Subjects:	Specific Sciences > Biology General Issues > Causation General Issues > Explanation Specific Sciences > Medicine
Date:	20 May 2016
URI:	https://philsci-archive.pitt.edu/id/eprint/12103

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