On Demonstrating the Impact of Defeasible Reasoning via a multi-Layer Argument-based Framework (Doctoral Consortium)

Promising results have indicated Argumentation Theory as a solid research area for implementing defeasible reasoning in practice. However, applications are usually domain dependent, not incorporating all the layers and steps required in an argumentation process, thus limit- ing their applicability in different areas. This PhD project is focused on the development of a multi-layer defeasible argument-based framework which is in turn used across different applications in the fields of decision making and knowledge representation and reasoning. The inference produced is compared against the inference of different quantitative theories of reasoning under uncertainty such as expert systems and fuzzy logic. The main contribution expected in this doctoral research is the demon- stration of the inferential capacity of defeasible reasoning, implemented through computational Argumentation Theory.