Conflict & Communication

The Ladder of Inference

See how you climb from facts to conclusions — and check your rungs.

A mental model of how we move from raw data to action by selecting facts, adding meaning, and assuming. In conflict, both sides often climb different ladders from the very same facts.

When to use it

When a dispute feels like bad faith — and before reacting to "what they did."

How to use it

1Notice your conclusion.
2Walk back down: what data did I select? what meaning did I add? what did I assume?
3Test the assumptions with the other side.
4Re-climb together from shared facts.

Takeaway

Most "bad faith" is two people on different ladders — climb back down before you argue.

Learn this in a course

Know the Players: Unions, the NLRB & the Rules

Related frameworks

Conflict Modes (Thomas-Kilmann)

LARA — for hard conversations

The De-escalation Ladder

All frameworks