Productive disagreement depends on how people feel about each other. We spend a lot of time thinking about how to argue, and not enough on how to shape the relationship that will define how the engagement goes. It’s often said that in order to disagree well, people need to put emotions aside and think purely rationally, but this is a myth. … | Ian Leslie Continue reading Productive Disagreement Depends on How People Feel About Each Other Ian Leslie
Our spoken language allows us to do more than just share information — it enables us to think and reason together. | David Gurteen Continue reading Our Spoken Language Enables Us to Think Together David Gurteen
video player How can groups make good decisions? | Mariano Sigman and Dan Ariely Mariano closes this talk with the . You can read the transcript below. Partial Transcript Good collective decisions require two components: deliberation and diversity of opinions. Right now, the way we typically make our voice heard in many societies is through Continue reading How Can Groups Make Good Decisions? Mariano Sigman and Dan Ariely (2017)
Reasoning was not designed to pursue the truth. Reasoning was designed by evolution to help us win arguments. Posts that link to this post What Are Cognitive Biases? Mistakes in reasoning, evaluating or rememberingTags: argument (33) | reasoning (55) | social reasoning (20) The Future of Reasoning How and Why We Reason Google Web Search Photo Continue reading The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason Reasoning was designed by evolution to help us win arguments
In this book, Conflicted, Ian Leslie draws essential lessons on how to disagree well from world-class experts: interrogators, hostage negotiators, divorce mediators, diplomats, and addiction counselors. It tells inspiring stories of productive disagreements, from the invention of the airplane to the success of The Rolling Stones, and combines them with fascinating insights from the science Continue reading Conflicted: Why Arguments Are Tearing Us Apart and How They Can Bring Us Together by Ian Leslie (2021)
Conflicted | Ian Leslie and Russ Roberts Ian Leslie talks about his book Conflicted with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Ian argues that far from being a negative thing, conflict is often the essential ingredient that helps us get to the right answer or best solution. Because some of our best thinking comes in collaboration with Continue reading Ian Leslie on Conflicted Ian Leslie (2021)
No truth is without some mixture of error, and no error so false but that it possesses no element of truth. If a man is in too big a hurry to give up an error, he is liable to give up some truth with it, and in accepting the arguments of the other man he is sure to get some errors with it. Honest argument is merely a process of mutually picking the beams and motes out of each other’s eyes so both … | Wilbur Wright Continue reading No Truth Is Without Some Mixture of Error Wilbur Wright
We don’t have a good word for engaging in a non-hostile disagreement with the shared aim of moving the participants towards a new understanding, better decision or new idea. Debate implies a competition with winners and losers. Argument comes tinged with animosity. Dialogue is too bland. Dialectic is too obscure. We talk about argument as if it is … | Ian Leslie Continue reading We Don’t Have a Good Word for Engaging in a Non-hostile Disagreement Ian Leslie
Imagine a culture where an argument is viewed as a dance, the participants are seen as performers, and the goal is to perform in a balanced and aesthetically pleasing way. In such a culture, people would view arguments differently, experience them differently, carry them out differently, and talk about them differently. But we would probably not view them as arguing at all: they would simply be … | George Lakoff and Mark Johnsen Continue reading Imagine a Culture Where an Argument Is Viewed as a Dance George Lakoff and Mark Johnsen
Our research shows that when students learn how to use talk to reason together, they become better at reasoning on their own. | Neil Mercer Continue reading Using Talk to Reason Together Neil Mercer
Education has long treated knowledge as something to be transmitted from teacher to student. Yet this one-way model no longer prepares us for a world of complexity and difference. Dialogic education offers an alternative path where learning becomes a shared inquiry, and understanding grows through genuine conversation. Continue reading Dialogic Learning Learning through conversation and difference
Reasoning is usually treated as a tool for forming sound beliefs and decisions. Yet research on cognitive bias suggests our individual reasoning is often unreliable and shaped by hidden distortions. Social reasoning offers an alternative: we think better together, testing ideas through dialogue and shared critique rather than alone. Continue reading The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason We did not evolve to reason individually but to reason socially
Differing viewpoints can lead to tension and misunderstandings in challenging conversations. A conversation covenant provides a structured approach to ensuring respectful and constructive dialogue. Establishing agreed-upon guidelines helps create a safe environment for discussing even the most difficult topics. Continue reading Conversation Covenant Creating a psychologically safer space for difficult conversations
Debates are an essential part of communication, allowing for the exchange of differing viewpoints. However, understanding their various forms and purposes can be challenging. By examining the structure and significance of debates, we can gain a deeper understanding of their role in public discourse and critical thinking. Continue reading Understanding Debates Argument is meant to reveal the truth, not to create it
The meaning of dialogue The word “dialogue” has several meanings, depending on the context in which it is used. If you look up the word in most dictionaries, you will find definitions like this. A conversation between two or more persons. e.g., A discussion about the subject took place. The exchange of opinions between people or groups who disagree with each other. e.g., There was a dialogue … Continue reading Dialogue Dialogue is a disciplined form of conversation
The Power of Team Huddles Ongoing Performance Conversations Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close The Oracy Lab is an experimental space for exploring the power and possibilities of conversations and spoken communication for conveying meaning and co-creating Continue reading The Oracy Lab An experimental space for exploring the power and possibilities of conversations
Speak with Less Conviction Reduce Emailing and Texting ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close Disagree constructively: Disagreement is an inevitable part of life. Most of the time, we do it poorly. We need to learn to Continue reading Disagree Constructively How to disagree well
Schools rightly prioritise numeracy and literacy as the core foundations of learning. Yet listening and speaking, the capacities that shape how we think together, receive far less attention and are rarely examined. Oracy deserves equal standing alongside reasoning, understanding, and meaningful human connection. Continue reading Oracy The ability to express oneself in and understand spoken language
