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The PhilPapers Survey is the largest systematic empirical investigation of the professional views and demographic characteristics of academic philosophers. Directed by David Bourget and David J. Chalmers and administered through the Centre for Digital Philosophy, the project monitors disciplinary consensus, divergence, and longitudinal shifts across core areas of philosophy. For scholars and research administrators studying the broader landscape of the discipline as outlined in our guide on what is philosophy, the survey provides quantitative evidence on how philosophical commitments evolve across generations and geographic regions.
What It Is
The PhilPapers Survey is a structured census of philosophical opinion that measures professional acceptance of, or leaning toward, competing philosophical positions. The project emerged from the broader PhilPapers bibliographic ecosystem to address a longstanding empirical vacuum: while philosophers frequently debate whether specific theories enjoy widespread acceptance, the discipline historically lacked rigorous survey data to test those sociological claims.
Rather than functioning as a public opinion poll or student questionnaire, the survey operates as a controlled study of professional academic researchers. Survey results do not adjudicate philosophical truth, but they establish empirical baseline data regarding the distribution of views among active researchers, informing debates in metaphilosophy, sociology of knowledge, and curriculum development.
Who Runs It and What It Covers
The survey is designed and administered by philosophers David Bourget (Western University / Centre for Digital Philosophy) and David J. Chalmers (New York University and Australian National University). The initiative has completed two major empirical waves, documenting foundational trends in analytic and broad philosophical scholarship.
The 2009 PhilPapers Survey
The initial 2009 wave focused on 30 central philosophical questions covering epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, ethics, and philosophy of language. The target population was drawn from 99 leading PhD-granting departments in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The findings were formally published in Philosophical Studies in 2014, establishing baseline distributions on topics such as realism vs. anti-realism, the mind-body problem, and moral realism.
The PhilPapers Survey 2020
The philpapers survey 2020 (often cited as the 2020 philpapers survey) dramatically expanded both topical breadth and geographic inclusion. In this second wave, the survey questionnaire increased from 30 to 100 philosophical questions, organized into 40 main questions and 60 additional questions spanning applied ethics, meta-philosophy, political philosophy, and epistemology.
The sampling framework in 2020 comprised a defined target population of 7,685 philosophers divided into two structural cohorts:
- Group 1 (6,112 philosophers): All regular faculty members (tenure-track or permanent) in BA-granting philosophy departments with four or more members across Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States, identified via the PhilPeople database.
- Group 2 (1,573 philosophers): English-publishing faculty in BA-granting philosophy departments internationally with four or more English-publishing members.
A total of 1,785 professional philosophers completed the 2020 survey. Additionally, to preserve rigorous longitudinal comparability with the 2009 wave, the authors tracked a 100-department benchmark cohort comprising 2,407 philosophers. The complete methodology and primary analyses were published by Bourget and Chalmers in 2023 in Philosophers’ Imprint.
Clarification Regarding PhilPapers Survey 2024
Academic queries referencing a philpapers survey 2024 typically reflect researchers searching for post-publication datasets and secondary analyses following the release of the 2020 survey paper in late 2023. The PhilPapers project conducts multi-year longitudinal waves rather than annual surveys. No separate field census was conducted in 2024; the 2020 survey dataset remains the definitive current empirical benchmark.
How to Search and Use the Survey Platform
The Centre for Digital Philosophy hosts the complete interactive survey interface at survey2020.philpeople.org. Researchers, bibliometricians, and evaluators can navigate the platform through six concrete steps:
- Access the Results Portal: Navigate to the primary results dashboard at
/survey/results/allto view aggregate distributions across all 100 questions. - Toggle Question Categories: Use the navigation menu to switch between the 40 Main Questions and the 60 Additional Questions.
- Select Population Filters: Choose between distinct reporting cohorts: the controlled Target Population, the 100-department Longitudinal Population, All Respondents, or Graduate Students.
- Analyze Demographic Breakdowns: Select the Demographic Results view to examine how answers distribute across gender, age cohorts, geographic location, and primary Area of Specialization (AOS).
- Inspect Longitudinal Trajectories: Access the Longitudinal Analysis tab to view statistically normalized comparison tables illustrating percentage-point movements between 2009 and 2020.
- Evaluate Correlations: Open the Correlation Matrix to review pairwise correlations between philosophical commitments across fields.
Strengths and Limits
Evaluating empirical data in philosophy requires understanding the methodological boundaries of survey instruments:
- Methodological Strengths: The survey provides the only large-scale, standardized quantitative evidence of disciplinary views. It uses explicit sampling frames rather than self-selected open web polls, maintains open access to aggregated tables, and facilitates robust longitudinal tracking.
- Disciplinary Limitations: The target frame focuses specifically on English-publishing academic staff, which may underrepresent non-Anglophone traditions. Furthermore, closed-form survey questions necessarily condense intricate philosophical nuances into discrete response options (e.g., “accept”, “lean toward”, or “agnostic”).
- Research Practice Considerations: Survey findings represent sociological patterns of belief, not peer-reviewed refutations of philosophical arguments. Sociological prevalence must not be conflated with epistemic validity in departmental tenure evaluations or grant allocation processes, adhering to established principles of research ethics and protocols for free prior and informed consent.
Alternatives and Comparative Platforms
Researchers investigating scholarly opinions, research trends, and academic demographics can compare the PhilPapers Survey with complementary tools across scholarly publishing:
| Platform / Instrument | Primary Focus | Sampling Frame | Key Advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhilPapers Survey | Empirical philosophical positions and longitudinal shifts | Controlled international academic faculty (7,685 target) | Direct measurement of philosophical stance consensus |
| PhilPeople Profiles | Individual researcher affiliations, publications, and self-identified AOS | Open registration directory of academic philosophers | Continuous real-time updates of individual scholarly activity |
| Experimental Philosophy (X-Phi) Studies | Empirical intuition testing across specific thought experiments | Targeted experimental participant samples and lab cohorts | Granular psychological testing of intuitions and judgment |
| APA Demographic Surveys | Workforce demographics, salary, and employment trends | American Philosophical Association institutional membership | Institutional and professional equity monitoring |
| Scholarly Peer Review Metadata | Bibliometric citation patterns and editorial evaluation | Cross-publisher indexing systems subject to peer review | Tracks formal published scholarship output rather than opinions |
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the sample size of the 2020 PhilPapers Survey?
The 2020 PhilPapers Survey received complete responses from 1,785 professional philosophers drawn from an international target population frame of 7,685 academic faculty members across BA-granting philosophy departments.
How often is the PhilPapers Survey conducted?
The PhilPapers Survey operates on a decennial cycle rather than an annual schedule. The first wave was administered in 2009, and the second wave was fielded in late 2020, with comprehensive findings published in 2023.
Where can researchers access the raw PhilPapers survey data?
Aggregated frequency distributions, demographic correlations, and longitudinal comparisons are openly accessible at survey2020.philpeople.org. The formal research papers detailing methodology are archived openly on PhilArchive.
Sources
- Centre for Digital Philosophy: The 2020 PhilPapers Survey Results Portal (https://survey2020.philpeople.org/, read 2026-11-07)
- Centre for Digital Philosophy: 2020 Survey Population and Methodology (https://survey2020.philpeople.org/survey/design/population, read 2026-11-07)
- Bourget, D. & Chalmers, D. J. (2023). Philosophers on Philosophy: The 2020 PhilPapers Survey. Philosophers’ Imprint, 23(11) (https://philarchive.org/archive/BOUPOP-3, read 2026-11-07)
- Bourget, D. & Chalmers, D. J. (2014). What Do Philosophers Believe? Philosophical Studies, 170(3), 465–500 (read 2026-11-07)
