From Socrates as Plato portrays him (Meno and Republic, c. 380 BCE), set out for modern use by Richard Paul and Linda Elder (2006).
Tests a belief through layered questions about meaning, evidence, assumptions, and consequences, so the person holding it finds the gaps in their own reasoning.
When to reach for it
When a confident claim needs its footing checked without a confrontation, or when an insight will only stick if the other person reaches it.
How it runs
- Name the belief or claim to examine.
- Ask what it means, and for a concrete example.
- Ask what it assumes and how the person knows it.
- Ask what follows if it is true, and who would disagree.
- Let the other person draw the conclusion.
Where it sits in SOLVE eX
- Any step: Tools that serve every step: habits of thought and checks on the thinking itself.
Go to the source
- Meno; Republic, c. 380 BCE
- The Thinker's Guide to the Art of Socratic Questioning, 2006