Integrity is consistency of actions, values, methods, measures and principles. A value system's abstraction depth and range of applicable interaction are also significant factors in determining integrity due to their congruence with empirical observation. A value system may evolve over time while retaining integrity if those who espouse the values account for and resolve inconsistencies.
Integrity may be seen as the quality of having a sense of honesty and truthfulness in regard to the motivations for one's actions. The term hypocrisy is used in contrast to integrity for asserting that one part of a value system is demonstrably at odds with another, and to demand that the parties holding apparently conflicting values account for the discrepancy or change their beliefs to improve internal consistency.
Testing of integrity
One can test a value system's accountability either:
1. subjectively, by a person's individual measures or
2. objectively, via the scientific method or via a standardized mathematical measure
Integrity in relation to value systems
A value is an assumption upon which implementation or other values can be extrapolated. A value system is a set of consistent values and measures. The Scientific Method assumes that a system with perfect integrity yields a singular hypothetical extrapolation that can be tested against observed results.
Testing theories via the scientific method
Formal measures of integrity rely on a set of testing principles known as the scientific method. To the extent that a proof follows the requirements of the method, scholars consider that proof scientific. The scientific method includes measures to ensure unbiased testing and a requirement that the hypothesis have falsifiability.
One tests the integrity of a value system scientifically by using the values, methods and measures of the system to formulate a hypothesis of an expected cause-and-effect relationship. When the cause creates the expected effect...