Guidelines for respectful, constructive, and inclusive philosophical discussion

Nicolas-André Monsiau, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Debate_Of_Socrates_And_Aspasia.jpg

The following guidelines are based on the Guidelines compiled by Professor David Chalmers: https://consc.net/guidelines/

I. Norms of respect

1. Be nice.  Respect each others' cultural background, religions, beliefs and customs.

2. Don’t interrupt.

3. Don’t present objections as flat dismissals (leave open the possibility that there’s a response).

4. Don’t be incredulous.

5. Don’t roll your eyes, make faces, laugh at a participant.

6. Don’t start side conversations parallel to the main discussion.

7. Acknowledge your interlocutor’s insights.

8. Object to theses, don’t object to people.

9. Expect objections and disagreements.

10. Be forgiving.  People can make mistakes (especially the tutor).

II. Norms of constructiveness

1. Objections are fine, but it’s also always OK to be constructive, building on a speaker’s project or strengthening their position. Even objections can often be cast in a constructive way.

2. Even when an objection is destructive with respect to a position, it often helps to find a positive insight suggested by the objection.

3. If you find yourself thinking that the project is worthless and there is nothing to be learned from it, think twice before expressing your opinion.

4. It’s OK to question the presuppositions of a project or an area, but discussions in which these questions dominate can be unhelpful.

5. You don’t need to keep pressing the same objection (individually or collectively) until the speaker submits.

6. Remember that philosophy isn’t a zero-sum game. (Related version: philosophy isn’t Fight Club.)

III. Norms of inclusiveness:

1. Don’t dominate the discussion (partial exception for the speaker here!).

2. Try not to let your question (or your answer) run on forever.  

3. Raise one question at a time (follow-ups are OK, but questions on different topics go to the back of the queue).

4. Acknowledge points made by previous questioners.

5. It’s OK to ask a question that you think may be unsophisticated or uninformed.

6. Don’t use unnecessarily offensive examples.

Additional information: 

• See Professor David Chalmers web page for further information: https://consc.net/guidelines/
• See the New York University guidelines for respectful discussion for a similar version of this list.  https://as.nyu.edu/departments/philosophy/climate/initiatives/nyu-guidelines-for-respectful-philosophical-discussion.html
• A Framework for Whole-Class Discussions: https://www.edutopia.org/article/framework-whole-class-discussions