A judging paradigm or philosophy is a short-hand explanation that describes your predispositions and discloses how you will decide a round. These are extremely important to the debaters because different philosophies emphasize some arguments over others. If you’re a new judge, it is normal not to have a philosophy yet. Judging philosophies are developed from watching debate rounds and figuring out what you find persuasive.
What kind of judge are you?
Stock Issues - A stock issues judge believes that the affirmative plan must fulfill all their burdens. If the negative proves that the affirmative is lacking in any one of the issues, it is grounds for the plan to be rejected. Stock issue judges generally prefer a clear, eloquent presentation of issues in round, and dislike arguments that seem to not relate to the topic on the surface.
Policymaker- Policymaker judges tend to take the theoretical viewpoint that they are the "policymaker," and as such, they vote for the side that presents the best policy option. Typically, Policymakers vote heavily on disadvantages and counter-plans, and may not vote on kritiks or topicality arguments. However, more and more policymakers are beginning to incorporate parts of the gamer (see below) paradigm into their views, making them more open to kritical arguments. The basic policy of this paradigm is the weighing of the affirmative's advantages versus the negative's disadvantages.
Hypothesis Tester- A hypothesis tester is viewing the topic resolution as a hypothesis that the affirmative team tests through their plan. This paradigm represents a heavy focus on resolution debate instead of plan-focused debate, and opens up some non-standard options for negative teams to use against the affirmative. Generic topic attacks, inherency arguments, counterplans, counterwarrants, and conditional arguments are generally all accepted by judges with this paradigm.
Tabula Rasa- This is the Latin phrase that translates to clean slate, tabula rasa judges claim to begin the debate with no assumptions on what is proper to vote on. "Tab" judges expect teams to show why arguments should be voted on, instead of assuming a certain paradigm. While a generalization is unfair, most tab judges will be comfortable with fast speeches, along with counter-plans, disadvantages, and kritiks. However, it is best to ask a "tab" judge on his or her preference in regard to specific types of arguments.
Game Theorist- Games judges were common in the 1990s, especially among young college debaters judging High School rounds. As the name suggests, these judges believe that debate is a game, and any argument that forms a coherent syllogism is "fair play" in round. Games judges will have no qualms about voting for a policy that vaporizes the moon, disbands the U.S. government, or any other policy action that would normally be considered "absurd" as long as one of the teams can prove that the aforementioned action is the most advantageous choice in the round.
Appearance- Appearance judges, often known as lay judges, judge based on appearance and eloquence of speech. Appearance judging is normally discouraged in some parts of the country, however, some judges lack experience with the complexities of debate theory and delivery and therefore subliminally resort to this style of judging. Speeding, Kritiks, jargon, and counterplans are strongly discouraged, and disadvantages should be run slowly and with detailed explanation.
