Surface and examine the assumptions you are making

Name the assumptions filling the gap between the data you selected and the interpretation you reached.

Why it works

Assumptions are the invisible links in the inferential chain — the beliefs you did not consciously choose but that are required for the interpretation to follow from the data. They are often so obvious to the holder that they are not recognized as assumptions at all. Making them explicit converts them from invisible architecture to examinable hypotheses, which is the minimum condition for checking whether they are warranted.

How to do it

1. Ask: "What would have to be true about people (or the world) for my interpretation to follow from the data?"
2. Write those statements as "I am assuming that…"
3. Check each assumption: is it based on evidence, or is it a standing belief imported from elsewhere?
4. Invite a person with a different background to name what assumptions they think you are making.

Evidence

Argyris’s own research on organizational double-loop learning documents how unexamined assumptions sustain defensive routines that prevent effective problem-solving — directly motivating the practice of surfacing assumptions. The general principle (implicit beliefs drive behavior and must be surfaced to change it) is foundational in cognitive therapy as well. (clinical)

The research is primarily organizational and case-study-based; RCT evidence on the practice of surfacing assumptions as an individual cognitive intervention is limited.

Sources

• Argyris & Schön (1978), Organizational Learning: A Theory of Action Perspective

Common mistake

Identifying your assumptions in words that are so abstract they cannot be checked ("I assume people have good intentions") rather than specific enough to be examined ("I assume she knew about the meeting").