Thanks for writing this. The suggested criticism of debate is as old as debate itself, and in addition to the reasons you list here, I’d add the *epistemic* benefits of debating.
Competitive debating allows for the exploration of the argumentative landscape of the given topic in all its breath (from the preparation to the debating itself). That means that it allows for the formulation of the best arguments for either side, which (given all the cognitive biases we may have) may be hard to come by in a non-competitive context. As a result, debate is a learning experience, not only because one has to prepare for it, but because the consequences of what we have learned can be examined with the highest rigor possible. The latter is due to the fact that debate allows for critical interaction with `experts’ whose views conflict with one’s one, which has been considered essential for the justification of our beliefs already with Mill, and all the way to the contemporary social epistemology.
Thanks for writing this. The suggested criticism of debate is as old as debate itself, and in addition to the reasons you list here, I’d add the *epistemic* benefits of debating.
Competitive debating allows for the exploration of the argumentative landscape of the given topic in all its breath (from the preparation to the debating itself). That means that it allows for the formulation of the best arguments for either side, which (given all the cognitive biases we may have) may be hard to come by in a non-competitive context. As a result, debate is a learning experience, not only because one has to prepare for it, but because the consequences of what we have learned can be examined with the highest rigor possible. The latter is due to the fact that debate allows for critical interaction with `experts’ whose views conflict with one’s one, which has been considered essential for the justification of our beliefs already with Mill, and all the way to the contemporary social epistemology.