Page "Epistemology" Paragraph 78

Another response to the regress problem is coherentism, which is the rejection of the assumption that the regress proceeds according to a pattern of linear justification.

To avoid the charge of circularity, coherentists hold that an individual belief is justified circularly by the way it fits together ( coheres ) with the rest of the belief system of which it is a part.

This theory has the advantage of avoiding the infinite regress without claiming special, possibly arbitrary status for some particular class of beliefs.

Yet, since a system can be coherent while also being wrong, coherentists face the difficulty of ensuring that the whole system corresponds to reality.

Additionally, most logicians agree that any argument that is circular is inherently invalid.

That is, arguments must be linear with conclusions that flow directly from stated premises.