The Skills of Argument presents a comprehensive, empirical study of
informal reasoning as argument, involving subjects across the life span.
Professor Kuhn asked her subjects questions that people have occasion to
think and talk about in everyday life, such as "What causes prisoners to
return to crime after they are released?" "What causes unemployment?"
"What causes children to fail in school?" Subjects were asked to offer
their own theories regarding the cause of the phenomenon and then asked
to provide supporting evidence for their theories. This is the first
major study of how people reason in everyday life, and it highlights the
importance of argumentative reasoning in everyday thought. Professor
Kuhn's findings address crucial issues in cognitive and developmental
psychology, as well as in education, and her work will also appeal to
philosophers, political scientists, and linguists interested in
argumentative discourse.