ABSTRACT
This chapter gives an overview of Hempel’s work on confirmation and induction. It first explains Hempel’s approach to the problem of induction and his probabilistic explication of degree of confirmation. The discussion then proceeds to Hempel’s explication of the classificatory or qualitative concept of confirmation, and the satisfaction criterion in particular. This is followed by discussion of the famous paradox of the ravens, Hempel’s analysis and its impact on later work. Finally, Goodman’s “new riddle on induction,” which takes issue with Hempel’s confirmation criteria, is reviewed and assessed, as well as Hempel’s later work on values in inductive inference.
