Impacts
The final piece of any soundly constructed argument is the impact—the reason why the argument should matter to the audience. Without an impact, an argument is meaningless in a debate round; the speaker may be making a true argument, but the audience will not assign it any value.
Like claims, warrants, and data, impacts should be clearly delineated through the use of exact phraseology. A few ways to introduce impacts are “This is important because...” and “The impact of this argument is...” Such language lets the audience know that the logical flow of the argument is complete and that the speaker is now performing a distinct task, which is evaluating the weight of the argument in the context of the round.
Impacts should build on the language of the claim and extend the scope of the argument to include large benefits or harms. If the claim established that the resolution will “stimulate the economy,” then the impact should establish the specific and tangible benefits of economic growth. The best impacts involve people.
Rising economic indicators may sound good to an economist, but are not clearly related to everyday life. When crafting impacts, tie general statistics to tangible effects on people’s lives. “Rising unemployment” should become “millions of Americans out of work and unable to provide for their families”; “improved American image around the world” should become “fewer lives lost to violent attacks.”
Illustrations and examples are especially effective when describing impacts: where claims and warrants are abstract, impacts should be concrete.
Impacts should begin by focusing on concrete, real-world effects and should always end by relating the argument back to its purpose: affirming or negating a resolution or piece of legislation. To continue with the example of economic stimulus, a complete impact would look like this: “This stimulus is important because it will lift millions of American families out of poverty, and affirming this resolution is the only way we can help these people.”