I listened to an interview this morning where a woman was asked for her advice on how to engage in constructive debate with religious fundamentalists.  I feel her advice could be used for any situation where the other person’s view is very different from his or her own.  Also, I’ve been reading a lot and taking several courses on communication, active listening, etc., and many of the concepts presented overlap with this woman’s list.

How to effectively engage in conversation/debate:

1.  Assume positive intent (of the other person) - That is assume the other person is genuine in their stance or belief system and is not just trying to pull one over on you.

2.  Remain calm

3.  Ask open-ended questions to try to better understand the other person’s position/argument.

4.  Be sure to state your arguments too.  Otherwise, it is not much of a conversation or debate.

5.  Do you best to be patient throughout the process.  It can be trying for both parties involved during the exchange.