Dempster-Shafer Argument Schemes

Abstract. Dempster-Shafer theory, which can be regarded as a generalisation of probability theory, is a widely used formalism for reasoning with uncertain infor-mation. The application of the theory hinges on the use of a rule for combining evidence from different sources. A number of different combination rules have been applied, each of which makes certain assumptions about the evidence. Here we describe several of these rules as argument schemes, using critical questions to capture the assumptions behind the rules. An example illustrates how we imagine these argument schemes might be used.