ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we review an important distinction in interpersonal argumentation between public-issue arguments and personal-issue arguments. Public-issue arguments focus on concerns outside an interpersonal dyad, whereas personal-issue arguments focus on issues tied closely to an interpersonal relationship. These two types of interpersonal arguments differ in terms of who argues about these topics, how argumentative episodes are interpreted and enacted, and the stakes that the arguments have for relational outcomes. This distinction is argued to be consequential for several areas of communication research including persuasion, conflict, relational communication, political deliberation, and public argument.
