Intuition

Intuition is a fast, subconscious judgment. CF treats intuitions as IGCs to be evaluated, not as authorities.

What intuition is

• Fast. Immediate, not deliberate.
• Subconscious. Not transparent to reasoning.
• Pattern-matching. Based on prior patterns.
• Often right. When built on good training.

What intuition is not

• Not authoritative. It's a guess.
• Not transparent. You can't always say why.
• Not infallible. Built on bias if you're not careful.
• Not a substitute for objective reasoning.

CF's stance: don't suppress, don't worship

CF's position is nuanced:

• Don't suppress intuitions. They're part of rational living.
• Don't worship them. They're fallible.
• practice good intuitions. Build automatized patterns of good judgment.
• Investigate unstable intuitions. When intuitions vary, they may be unreliable.

When intuitions help

• When built on good training. Expert intuition is valuable.
• When paired with reasoning. Use intuition to flag, reasoning to confirm.
• In routine cases. Where the pattern is well-learned.

When intuitions mislead

• When biased. You have a stake in the outcome.
• When novel. No good pattern to match.
• When in unfamiliar territory. "I've never seen this before."
• When you can't explain it. If you can't, it's a black box.

CF essays on intuition

• Don't Suppress Your Intuition
• Intuition and Rationality
• Intuition and Rational Debate
• Intuition Is Part of Rational Living
• Investigating Unstable Intuitions

"Intuition and Rationality" is a CF essay title. — criticalfallibilism.com