Phenomenology and QBism (Routledge Studies in the Philosophy of Mathematics and Physics)

This volume brings together philosophers and physicists to explore the parallels between Quantum Bayesianism, or QBism, and the phenomenological tradition. It is the first book exclusively devoted to phenomenology and quantum mechanics.

By emphasizing the role of the subject’s experiences and expectations, and by explicitly rejecting the idea that the notion of physical reality could ever be reduced to a purely third-person perspective, QBism exhibits several interesting parallels with phenomenology. The central message of QBism is that quantum probabilities must be interpreted as the experiencing agent’s personal Bayesian degrees of belief – degrees of belief for the consequences of their actions on a quantum system. The chapters in this volume elaborate on whether and specify how phenomenology could serve as the philosophical foundation of QBism. This objective is pursued from the perspective of QBists engaging with phenomenology as well as the perspective of phenomenologists engaging with QBism. These approaches enable us to realize a better understanding of quantum mechanics and the world we live in, achieve a better understanding of QBsim, and introduce the phenomenological foundations of quantum mechanics.

Phenomenology and QBism is an essential resource for researchers and graduate students working in the philosophy of physics, philosophy of science, quantum mechanics, and phenomenology.

Philipp Berghofer is a Post-Doc researcher and lecturer at the Philosophy Department of the University of Graz, Austria, and a former visiting fellow at the Center for Philosophy of Science at the University of Pittsburgh, USA (Spring Term 2023). His research focus centers around epistemology, phenomenology, and the philosophy of physics.

Harald A. Wiltsche is Full Professor in Theoretical Philosophy at Linköping University, Sweden. Prior to that, he held positions at Stanford University, the University of Toronto, and the University of Graz. His main areas of research are the general philosophy of science, the philosophy of physics, and phenomenology.