Usually, what we fear in a heated debate is not so much our feelings our feelings getting hurt but rather our professional credibility and stature being challenged. I find that Idea conflicts are best understood along two dimensions: the relative seniority of the debating parties and their relative expertise. In any idea conflict in which you find yourself engaged, you can categorize the person you engage as having more, less, or equal seniority as you and whether their domain expertise is the same, different, or partially overlapping your own...