Evaluation
Meta-discussion may seem artificial and even a waste of time. Especially in debates and other adversarial discussions, some participants may believe that their opponents are trying to evade consideration of the issues at hand by recourse to meta-discussion. This often leads to comments like “stick to the subject” or “answer the question,” which are themselves meta-discussion, though of a simple variety.
Still, it may sometimes be valuable to explore the higher-order issues about a discussion rather than the subject of the discussion itself. Tactful consideration of personality issues with some contributors as revealed in a discussion may lead to better insight and calmer exploration of the primary topic of the conversation.
Read more about this topic: Meta-discussion
Famous quotes containing the word evaluation:
“Good critical writing is measured by the perception and evaluation of the subject; bad critical writing by the necessity of maintaining the professional standing of the critic.”
—Raymond Chandler (1888–1959)
“Evaluation is creation: hear it, you creators! Evaluating is itself the most valuable treasure of all that we value. It is only through evaluation that value exists: and without evaluation the nut of existence would be hollow. Hear it, you creators!”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)