Questions are powerful for both having more civil conversations, and for changing minds. There are many types:
- Broad opening questions, "What do you think about X," or "How does Y make you feel?"
- Very specific questions. For example if "What do you mean by 'safety'?"
- Who, What, Where, When, Why and How questions. Often these questions can take people past talking points that have been pre-digested for each side, and get a real conversation happening. Asking when and why a person made up their mind can lead them to look at how they make decisions. Asking how a proposed policy would work has been found to moderate extremist views.
- Value questions behind policy questions.
Encourage politicians to find their spines.