The Toulmin Test: Framing Argumentation within Belief Revision Theories

Persuasive argumentation is a dialogical attempt to bring about a desired change in the beliefs of another agent – that is, to trigger a specific belief revision process in the mind of such agent. However, so far formal models of belief revision widely neglected any systematic comparison with argumentation theories, to the point that even the simplest argumentation structures cannot be captured within such models. In this essay, we endeavour to bring together argumentation and belief revision in the same conceptual framework, and to highlight the important role played by Toulmin’s layout of argument in fostering such integration.

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