Advocacy and Debate

Argumentation

the cooperative activity of developing and advancing arguments and of responding to the arguments of others

argument

as a claim advanced with a reason or reasons in its support

audience

the people for whom we develop our arguments

public discorse

open dissolution of those issues that potentially affect everyone

advocacy

the activity of promoting or opposing an idea in public settings

power

the capacity to wield influence, to shape important decisions that affect the lives of others

pluralistic culture

a society composed of groups who see the world from different perspectives, value different activities, hold disparate religious beliefs, and aspire in different goals. no other fact of modern social life demands our attention more than social pluralism does.

values

deeply held moral commitments acquired from family, cultural background, religious training, and personal experience.

rule of reason

The most basic agreement involved in reasoning with another person. And is the agreement to engage in the cooperative process of argumentation rather than to resolve disagreement by other means

procedures

the rules or guidelines according to which argumentation will take place

claim

a statement the advocate believes or is in the process of evaluating- the assertion being advanced

conclusion

is a claim that has been reached by a process of reasoning.

Inference

The rational movement from a particular reason or reasons to a particular conclusion

logical sense

sense of how arguments develop

indicators

words and phrases such as "because" and "therefore" that provide important clues to identifying reasons and conclusions in an argument

structure of inferences

the relationships among the reasons and the conclusions in an argument

cues

words or phrases that signal something, other than a reason or a conclusion, about the content of an argument - "and", "although", "in addition to", "frequently", "first, second, and finally"

reservation

a statement that acknowledges the existence of an argument, evidence or an attitude opposing the conclusion being advanced

evidence

is a reason rooted in observation, either your own or someone else's

Connectives

are reasons that consist of beliefs, values, assumptions, or generalizations that link evidence to a conclusion. (always demonstrated as true or false)

they are reasons that reflect personal commitments or generalizations that are widely accepted.

propositions of fact

statements that report, describe, predict, or make causal claims (does not have to be true)

fact

applies to a claim that can potentially be verified as either true or false

predictive

making claims about the future

propositions of value

are statements that advance judgments about morality, beauty, merit, or wisdom. "capital punishment is immoral"

criteria of evaluation

the standards on which a value judgment is based

propositions of policy

statements that urge that an action be taken or discontinued. "You should recycle"

deductive arguments

Are arguments that lead to necessary conclusions when their reasons are true. (moves from general to specific to a conclusion)

Premises

the reasons in a deductive argument

necessary conclusion

the conclusion of a deductive argument - a particular conclusion to which the reasons or premises in a deceptive argument, when accepted as true, unavoidably lead.

inductive arguments

arguments whose reasons lead to probable conclusions (moves from specific observations to a general conclusion)

Probable conclusion

a conclusion that can be shown to be more or less likely, but not necessary

inductive leap

a reasoning process in which the conclusion of an inductive argument moves beyond its stated evidence. (unlike deductive arguments)

scanning

involves identifying and marking the statements in an argument, as well as underlying indicators and cues

statement

any phrase or sentence that supplies a portion of the arguments content or meaning (doesn't have to be stated)

standardizing

the argument, which involves making each statement or implied statement in the argument a complete sentence, changing indefinite references such as pronouns to the definite nouns they represent, and placing reasons above the conclusions they support. - helps us grasp a logical structure

reservations

statements that acknowledge counter-arguments, significant opposition, or contrary evidence

complementary reasons

sometimes also called dependent reasons. These are pairs of reasons that must work together to lend support to their conclusion. - characteristic of deductive reasoning - (and)

linguistic link

a repeated phrase or term that links statements to one another

intermediate conclusion

a conclusion that is then used as a reason for some additional conclusion

claim

the assertion being advanced

data

the evidence presented in its support

warrant

the broader assumption linking the claim and the data

backing

foundational assumptions or presuppositions that support a warrant

rebuttals

possible answers or exceptions to the inference being drawn343

virtues

personal qualities that assist us in making ethically good choices

Pluralism

the variety of moral and ethical perspectives present in contemporary societies

political perspectives

ethical perspectives that rely on the essential values of a political system for their criteria of ethical assesment (U.S.A constitustion)

Human nature perspectives

ethical perspectives that develop around one or more essential qualities of human nature

Dialogic perspectives

ethical perspectives that elevate efforts to preserve the two-sidedness of public discourse

situational perspectives

Ethical perspectives that identify ethical considerations or principles inherent to each unique communication setting

argument virtues

those moral qualities and skills that help people think and act morally in an argumentative situation, and thus pursue argumentation in a manner that promotes and improves its practice

honesty

a commitment not to willingly mislead, and generally a regard for what is or what we take to be true

courage in argument

a willingness to accept the risks associated with open advocacy of one's position, even when that position is unpopular or dangerous

cooperation

argumentation is a process that requires the virtue of cooperation if good decisions are to be reached and controversial issues resolved

respect for persons

a regard for others as reasoning persons

argumentative contexts

the spaces, venues, and relationships in which arguments are made and heard

regard for contexts

willingness to create and preserve space for argumentation to occur, cultivate the relationships in which it occurs, and allow the argumentative process to continue as long as necessary to ensure reasonable resolution of issues

support

the strength and accuracy of the argument's evidence

validity

a solid internal structure that allows for reliable connections between evidence and conclusions in an argument

valid argument

argument whose structure connects its reasons to its conclusions in a reliable manner

linguistic consistency

the clarity of the arguments language and its use of terms in the same way throughout the argument

acceptance

the agreement to accept the argument as presented; that is, to find it persuasive, or at least lacking in any major flaw

consideration

an agreement to think about the argument further, to withhold any final judgment about its quality for the time being

rebuttal

a counter-argument , a reasoned answer that addresses specific points made or evidence advanced in the original argument

refutation

A thoroughly successful response to an argument, one that clearly demonstrates a damaging flaw to the satisfaction of a relatively objective listener or reader.

repudiation

dismissal of an argument without serious consideration "that's just ridiculous "

accesibility

asking about the availability of evidence for examination

credibility

a reputation for accuracy and reliability

quality of the source

state the source's credentials or give reasons for credibility

internal consistency

the requirement that evidence and sources must not contradict themselves

relevance

asks whether the evidence advanced has any bearing on the argument's conclusion

adequacy

whether the evidence presented, when taken together, is sufficient to support its claim

scholarly journals

periodicals that feature essays and studies by experts, scholars, and researchers who are qualified to conduct research in their own fields

refereed

reviewed by two or more qualified readers before publication

editorial process

a careful review of submitted research reports that provides an important check on the quality of research published in a periodical

special interest periodicals

periodicals that focus on specific topics but are written for wider audiences than scholarly journals are

news and commentary publications

periodicals that specialize in reporting news and presenting informed editorial opinions

digital literacy

the capacity to skillfully navigate and employ online sources

statistics

numerical evidence from records , studies, reports, surveys, polls, and the like

sampling

statistically selecting and observing members of a group or population who are taken to be representative of the rest of the group (not what all members of the population thing - just some)

generalizations from a sample

claims that take as their evidence a sample drawn from a population, and advance a conclusion about members of the entire population (inductive leap occurs)

sample

the members of a group actually observed or consulted during the sampling process

sample size

the number of members in the sample

finding

what was observed about members of the sample

population

the group or class to which the generalization is meant to apply

property

a quality projected from the sample to the population

extent of the generalization

the portion of the population that is said to exhibit the property

representative

it accurately reflects the presence of a particular quality in the entire population

variation

relevant differences among members in a population - the degree to which members of a population vary in ways that may be relevant to the quality being tested in a generalization

fallacy of hasty generalization

a generalization based on a sample that is too small to support it

stratified sample

is a sample that adequately reflects the various groups that introduce variation within the population

random sample

is a sample in which every member of a given population had an equal chance of being selected for the sample

mean

the arithmetical average, the sum of a set of figures divided by the number of figures in the set

mode

the most frequently occur observation or response in a sample

median

is the figure that exactly divides the top half from the bottom half in a range of figures

expert testimony

the judgment or opinion of a qualified specialist in a discipline about matters relevant to that discipline

biased testimony

"interested testimony" testimony from individuals who stand to gain if what they say is accepted

reluctant testimony

testimony from sources who will lose something as a result of their testimony

unbiased testimony

testimony from individuals who will neither gain nor lose if their testimony is accepted as true

concurrent testimony

testimony that is consistent with other available sources of testimony on the topic