The following eight terminological definitions are inferred from and are complementary with the seven Foundational Axioms of Dialogic Design Science.
These definitions establish the foundational language of the science, and are evolving in accordance with the Domain of Science Model (DOSM) of John N. Warfield:
Dialogue
The engagement of observers/stakeholders in discovering meaning, understanding, wisdom, and actions for designing their social systems by means of structured inquiry in a "colaboratory of democracy." Conscious Evolution: The engagement of observers/stakeholders in a colaboratory for the purpose of creating their ideal futures.
Future
The state of a social system that is significantly different from the state obtained by extrapolating past and present trends.
Triggering question
A prompt framed by a colaboratory Design Management Team (DMT), in collaboration with the sponsor, for the purpose of enabling observers/stakeholders of the social system to construct high quality observations.
Elemental Observation
The succinct and content-specific observation by an observer/stakeholder in response to a triggering question during a Co-Laboratory.
Third Phase Science
All inquiry actions that aim to support observers/stakeholders in constructing high quality observations that make possible the design and implementation of action plans for the conscious evolution of a social system (for an elaboration of the three Phases of science please see the response to a question below).
====Truth====The convergence of the alternative realities (or pluralities) of a group of stakeholders participating in a colaboratory to a consensual, ephemeral, and language-sensitive snapshot of the complex situation they are confronting. This time-and-space-specific snapshot is subject to evolutionary learning by iteration. Problem statement:The appreciation by an observer/stakeholder of the dissonance between his/her belief of "what ought to be" and the observation of "what is." These statements of stakeholders with diverse perspectives and life-experiences are value-based and language-sensitive.