The propensity interpretation of fitness and the propensity interpretation of probability
Résumé
The paper provides a new critical perspective on the propensity interpretation of fitness, by investigating its relationship to the propensity interpretation of probability. Two main conclusions are drawn. First, the claim that fitness is a propensity cannot be understood properly: fitness is not a propensity in the sense prescribed by the propensity interpretation of probability. Second, this interpretation of probability is inessential for explanations proposed by the propensity interpretation of fitness in evolutionary biology. Consequently, interpreting the probabilistic dimension of fitness in terms of propensities is neither a strong motivation in favor of this interpretation, nor a possible target for substantial criticism.
Propose une nouvelle perspective critique sur l'interprétation propensionniste de la fitness ; plus précisément, il s'agit d'une critique de la fitness en tant que propension et de l'idée selon laquelle seule son interprétation propensionniste permettrait de rendre explicatif le principe de l'évolution par sélection naturelle.