Our spoken language allows us to do more than just share information — it enables us to think and reason together. Credit: David Gurteen People: David GurteenDavid Gurteen Keynote speaker, writer and conversational facilitatorBooks: David GurteenLeading Issues in Social Knowledge Management by David Gurteen (2012)Quotations: David GurteenA Conversation Architect Designs Strategic Conversations David GurteenArtificial Intelligence … 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)
The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason | THUNK Reasoning was not designed to pursue the truth. Reasoning was designed by evolution to help us win arguments. Posts that link to this post Two Interesting Theories of Reason Social reasoningand the narrative paradigm What Are Cognitive Biases? Mistakes in reasoning, evaluating or rememberingTags: argument (36) | reasoning (51) … Continue reading The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason Reasoning was designed by evolution to help us win arguments
Gurteen Knowledge Blog May 7, 2021, 15:34I recently came across a fascinating theory concerning the evolution of human reason known as “The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason”. However, I prefer to use the term “theory of social reasoning” or simply “social reasoning”. The theory proposes that the primary function of reason is not to improve our … Continue reading Social Reasoning The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason
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 … Continue reading No Truth Is Without Some Mixture of Error by 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 … 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 … 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. Credit: Neil Mercer Source: Why teach oracy?Quotations: Neil MercerUsing Talk to Reason Together Neil MercerTags: education (23) | Neil Mercer (2) | oracy (20) | reasoning (51) | social reasoning (19)Google Web Search … Continue reading Using Talk to Reason Together Neil Mercer
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 … Continue reading Productive Disagreement Depends on How People Feel About Each Other Ian Leslie
The argumentative theory of reasoning proposes that reason did not evolve to help us to reason individually but to reason together – in other words, socially. Reasoning is generally seen as the process of thinking about something to help us come to better beliefs and decisions. However, there is substantial evidence that our reasoning process, … Continue reading The Argumentative Theory of Human Reason We did not evolve to reason individually but to reason socially
When discussing a controversial topic, it is easy for the discussion to become hostile and for the participants to launch ad hominem attacks, thus creating a climate of fear. Participants need to agree to a set of rules upfront that helps create a safer psychological environment to explore ideas openly. What is a conversation covenant? … Continue reading Conversation Covenant Creating a psychologically safer space for impossible conversations
Debate has two meanings: A debate is an informal discussion between two or more people in which they express different opinions about something. A debate is a formal discussion, such as in parliaments or institutions, where people express different opinions about a particular issue and then vote on it. The only way that someone can … Continue reading Debate 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 … Continue reading Dialogue Dialogue is a disciplined form of conversation
Disagree constructively: Disagreement is an inevitable part of life. Most of the time, we do it poorly. We need to learn to disagree constructively. How do we go about it? A simple disagreement hierarchy provides guidance. Disagreement is an inevitable part of life. But unfortunately, we mostly do it poorly. Paul Graham’s disagreement hierarchy provides … Continue reading Disagree Constructively How to disagree well
The Oracy Lab is an experimental space for exploring the power and possibilities of conversations and spoken communication for conveying meaning and co-creating a deeper understanding of the complexity and dynamics of the world. Oracy is the ability to speak persuasively, articulate thoughts and ideas clearly, listen powerfully to others, clarify our own ideas and … Continue reading The Oracy Lab An experimental space for exploring the power and possibilities of conversations
In education, considerable emphasis is placed on numeracy and literacy — understanding and working with numbers and reading and writing. But what about the capacity to listen and to speak? Why is so little importance attached to oracy? Is the ability to hold a good conversation as important as being able to read well? “Is … Continue reading Oracy The ability to express oneself in and understand spoken language