Fallacies and Judgments of Reasonableness: Empirical Research Concerning the Pragma-Dialectical Discussion Rules (Argumentation Library Book 16)

In __Fallacies and Judgments of Reasonableness__, Frans H. van Eemeren, Bart Garssen and Bert Meuffels report on their systematic empirical research of the conventional validity of the pragma-dialectical discussion rules. The experimental studies they carried out during more than ten years start from the pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation developed at the University of Amsterdam, their home university. In these studies they test methodically the intersubjective acceptability of the rules for critical discussion proposed in this theory by confronting ordinary arguers who have not received any special education in argumentation and fallacies with discussion fragments containing both fallacious and non-fallacious argumentative moves. The research covers a wide range of informal fallacies. In this way, the authors create a basis for comparing the theoretical reasonableness conception of pragma-dialectics with the norms for judging argumentative moves prevailing in argumentative practice. __Fallacies and Judgments of Reasonableness__ provides a unique insight into the relationship between theoretical and practical conceptions of reasonableness, supported by extensive empirical material gained by means of sophisticated experimental research. Front Matter....Pages i-x Theoretical Background and Organization of the Study....Pages 1-30 Considerations Regarding the Design of the Study....Pages 31-50 Ad Hominem Fallacies: An Exemplary Study....Pages 51-83 The Confrontation Stage: The Freedom Rule....Pages 85-109 The Opening Stage: The Obligation-to-Defend Rule (I)....Pages 111-137 The Opening Stage: The Obligation-to-Defend (II)....Pages 139-161 The Argumentation Stage: The Argument Scheme Rule....Pages 163-191 The Concluding Stage: The Concluding Rule....Pages 193-201 Conventional Validity of the Pragma-Dialectical Discussion Rules....Pages 203-224 Back Matter....Pages 225-231 Reports on the authors' Systematic Empirical Research of the Conventional Validity of the Pragma-Dialectical Discussion Rules. This book provides an insight into theoretical and practical conceptions of reasonableness, supported by empirical material gained by means of experimental research