A theory of effective human communication stressing the importance of rules is presented. The concept of rules provides a methodological focus for communications and linguistics research. The nature, structure, and function of rules are described as they apply to communicative conduct. The relationship between rules and behavior is examined. In addition, the following methods for inferring rules from behavior are investigated: self-reflection, survey, naturalistic observation, participant observation, quasi-experimentation, and experimentation. Specific ways in which rules may contribute to communications theory are (...) discussed. Suggested research problems include the identification of communication rules, the construction of communications theories, the development of strategies for the recognition and use of rules, and the practical implications of rules theory and research. (nm). (shrink)

This book identifies 25 argumentation schemes for presumptive reasoning and matches a set of critical questions to each.

Logical guarantees of validity must be understood as subject to the proviso that no equivocation is committed. But we do not have a formal theory of equivocation. This paper attempts to formulate rules for responding to equivocal arguments in the context of dialogue. What occurs when one distinguishes meanings of an equivocal expression turns out to be rather different from definition.

The basic question of this monograph is: how should we go about judging arguments to be reasonable or unreasonable? Our concern will be with argument in a broad sense, with realistic arguments in natural language. The basic object will be to engage in a normative study of determining what factors, standards, or procedures should be adopted or appealed to in evaluating an argument as "good," "not-so-good," "open to criticism," "fallacious," and so forth. Hence our primary concern will be with the (...) problems of how to criticize an argument, and when a criticism is reasonably justified. (shrink)

He further argues that it is necessary to rethink traditional conceptions of argument, and to find a position that avoids the limitations of both the highly abstract approach of formal logic and the highly contextualized approaches of rhetoric and communication theory.".