A Discussion Information-Structuring Model Based on the Toulmin Formalism

In the course of discussion, the group will produce a lot of discussion information, in which the consensus is hided. This paper proposes a discussion information-structuring model for consensus building. The model divided a statement into several parts such as premise, warrant, modality, claim etc., according to the Toulmin argument formalism. "Modelity" is designed as a quantitative scale that reflects the expert's attitude to the claim, while premise and warrant are used to provide demonstration for the expert views. We can reach a consensus by computing the value of modality. The model is a comprehensive description of the discussion information, and can effectively manage the discussion information and do consensus building.