Responding to Irrational Discussion Tactics
Radio Q&A: 3 June 2012, Question 1
I answered a question on responding to irrational discussion tactics on 3 June 2012. You can listen to or download the podcast of just this question below – or check out the whole episode of Philosophy in Action Radio.
How should a person respond to another's irrational discussion tactics? What should one do when engaged in an intellectual conversation with someone where you're trying to advance your ideas, but the other person has irrational, or even outright dishonest conversation techniques? Such techniques include frequent interruption, talking over you, giving arbitrary time limits for answers before arbitrarily ending the conversation or moving on, and so forth. All of these tactics make it difficult to fully explicate your position or even get full sentences out. In a one-on-one, unobserved conversation, I know it's obvious that one should simply not deal with this person, for they're obviously not listening if they utilize these habits so regularly and frequently. So my main concern is in those cases when you happen to be talking to an irrational conversationalist where other people are observing, such as in a classroom or meeting where you might want to continue the conversation in hopes of reaching the audience instead. In such cases, what should one do?
My Answer, In Brief: Don't assume that the other person is being irrational or dishonest, as the problem could be more benign, such as a clash of styles. Try to solve the problem together, and if that's not possible, then state your objection and extract yourself from the conversation.
Tags: Communication, Ethics, Honesty, Personality, Psychology, Rationality
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I'm Dr. Diana Brickell. I'm a philosopher specializing in the application of rational principles to the challenges of real life. I received my Ph.D in philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2009. My book, Responsibility & Luck: A Defense of Praise and Blame, is available for purchase in paperback and Kindle. The book defends the justice of moral praise and blame of persons using an Aristotelian theory of moral responsibility, thereby refuting Thomas Nagel's "problem of moral luck."
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