How can you use evidence-based reasoning to support your presentation claims?

1 Define your purpose and audience

Before you start your presentation, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and who you are speaking to. What is the main message you want to convey? What are the key points you want to make? How will you structure your presentation to guide your audience through your reasoning? Who are your audience members and what are their needs, expectations, and backgrounds? How can you tailor your presentation to suit their interests, knowledge, and preferences?

2 Choose relevant and reliable sources

The quality of your evidence depends on the quality of your sources. You need to select sources that are relevant to your topic, reliable in their accuracy and credibility, and recent in their timeliness and relevance. You also need to cite your sources properly and acknowledge their limitations or biases. Avoid using sources that are outdated, unreliable, biased, or irrelevant to your purpose and audience.

3 Use logic and critical thinking

Logic and critical thinking are essential skills for evidence-based reasoning. They help you to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information, and to identify and avoid logical fallacies and biases. Logical fallacies are errors in reasoning that make your arguments invalid or unsound, such as hasty generalizations, false dilemmas, or ad hominem attacks. Biases are tendencies to favor or reject certain information based on your own beliefs, preferences, or emotions, such as confirmation bias, anchoring bias, or availability bias. You need to be aware of these pitfalls and check your own reasoning and evidence for any flaws or gaps.

4 Present your evidence clearly and convincingly

The way you present your evidence can make a big difference in how your audience perceives and responds to it. You need to present your evidence clearly and convincingly, using appropriate language, visuals, and examples. You also need to explain how your evidence supports your claims and how it relates to your main message and purpose. You need to anticipate and address any counterarguments or objections that your audience might have, and show how your evidence outweighs or refutes them. You need to use a respectful and confident tone, and avoid exaggerating, oversimplifying, or misrepresenting your evidence.

5 Invite feedback and questions

Evidence-based reasoning is not a one-way communication, but a dialogue with your audience. You need to invite feedback and questions from your audience, and listen to their perspectives and concerns. You need to be open to constructive criticism and new insights, and be willing to revise or refine your arguments if needed. You also need to acknowledge any uncertainties or limitations in your evidence or reasoning, and suggest areas for further research or discussion.

Evidence-based reasoning can help you to deliver effective and persuasive presentations that build trust and rapport with your audience. By using facts, data, and logic to support your claims, and by avoiding logical fallacies and biases, you can demonstrate your credibility and expertise, and influence your audience's decisions and actions.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?