RAIL

Please note the approaching deadline. A final CFP has been issued!

CALL FOR PAPERS

1st European Conference on Argumentation – ECA Lisbon 2015
Argumentation and Reasoned Action
9-12 June 2015, Lisbon, Portugal
www.ecargument.org

The European Conference on Argumentation (ECA) is a new pan-European initiative aiming to consolidate and advance various streaks of research into argumentation and reasoning: from philosophical, linguistic, discourse analytic, cognitive, to computational approaches. The chief goal of the initiative is to organize on a regular basis a major conference on argumentation. The first of these conferences will be hosted in Lisbon by the ArgLab, Institute of Philosophy (IFILNOVA), Universidade Nova de Lisboa. While based in Europe, ECA involves and further encourages participation from argumentation scholars all over the world.

CONFIRMED KEYNOTE SPEAKERS for ECA Lisbon 2015:

JOHN R. SEARLE
Philosophy, University of California, Berkeley, USA

ISABELA FAIRCLOUGH & NORMAN FAIRCLOUGH
Discourse Analysis, University of Central Lancashire & University of Lancaster, UK

SIMON PARSONS
Computer Science, University of Liverpool, UK

SPECIAL THEME

Argumentation and Reasoned Action

The primary idea behind this first edition of the conference is that argumentation and reasoning are the main vehicles for our decisions and actions. They accompany, indeed constitute, a variety of significant social practices: from individual practical reasoning, small group decisions, deliberations of official bodies in various institutional contexts, to large-scale political and social deliberations. Argumentation is understood here as a mode of action – and not just any action, but a reasoned action, comprised of consideration of reasons (whether they are good or bad). Traditionally, argumentation has been assigned many distinct functions: epistemic, moral, conversational, etc. The aim of the conference is to explore how these functions are interrelated with the practical need for deciding on a course of action. Simply put, our chief concern is with the role argumentation and reasoning play when the question of “what to do?” is addressed.

All kinds of approaches to argumentation and reasoning are welcome: the (informal) logical, (pragma-)dialectical, rhetorical, but also contributions that examine argumentation from the perspective of practical reasoning in moral philosophy and philosophy of action; deliberation in political theory; public policy analysis; legal decisions in philosophy of law; cognitive study of reasoning and decisions; models of decision-making in computer science; organisational, small-group, and interpersonal communication; or discourse analytic methods examining the linguistic tokens of argumentative practices.

The conference will be focused on, but not limited to, the following topics:

• Practical reasoning and argumentation
• Fallacious arguments and bad decisions
• Argumentation and decision-making in institutional (education, health, business) and interpersonal contexts
• Argumentation and deliberation in the public sphere
• Public policy debates and public controversies
• Argumentation in digital media
• Visual arguments as modes of action
• Models of argumentative dialogues
• Argumentation in multi-agent systems
• Legal arguments and legal decisions
• Cognitive mechanisms behind argumentative practices
• Submissions from students and young scholars are encouraged.

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION

The Programme Committee and Organising Committee invite the following types of original submissions:

Individual long papers
Submit extended abstracts (min. 1000, max. 1500 words), ready for blind referring.
Each accepted paper will have to be submitted before the conference, and will have a commentator assigned. Authors will be allocated longer slots (+- 45min).
Individual regular papers
Submit regular abstracts (min. 300, max. 500 words), ready for blind referring.
For authors of accepted regular papers there is no need to submit them in advance, and there will be no commentator. Authors will be allocated shorter slots (+- 25min).
Thematic panels/symposia
Thematic panels/symposia are expected to be directly related to the main theme of the conference. Panels should comprise of 3-5 speakers and last 90-150min; they may include a panel respondent (panel organiser her/himself or someone invited by the panel organiser). Panel proposals are submitted by the panel organiser; they should be prepared for blind referring and include: title; description of the panel, incl. its connection to the theme of the conference (300-500 words); the titles and abstracts of all contributions to the panel (300-500 words); and whether it will involve a respondent.

The deadline for all submissions is 1 October 2014.

Details of the submission procedure will be available at www.ecargument.org; in August 2014.

All individual paper and panel proposals will be blind reviewed for their overall quality and relevance to the conference by the members of the Scientific Committee of ECA Lisbon 2015 (See the conference website.)
Based on the reviews, the Programme Committee and Organising Committee will notify you of the acceptance or rejection by 1 December 2014.

PUBLICATION

Authors of all accepted papers (including those in thematic panels) and keynote addresses will be invited to publish them in conference proceedings. Details of the proceedings will be available soon at www.ecargument.org.

IMPORTANT DATES:
Individual paper submission deadline: 1 October 2014
Thematic panel submission deadline: 1 October 2014
Notification of acceptance/rejection: 1 December 2014
Early-bird registration: 28 February 2015
Final registration: 15 April 2015
Submission of long papers to commentators: 15 April 2015
Conference: 9-12 June 2015