Research: Socratic Method & Superpowers Plugin

Part 1: Socratic Method

1.1 Origins and Definition

Socratic Method (also known as Socratic questioning, Socratic dialogue, or method of Elenchus) is a dialectical dialogue method developed by ancient Greek philosopher Socrates (470-399 BCE).

Core definition: This method uses purposeful questioning sequences to probe the beliefs and assumptions of dialogue participants, guiding them to discover inconsistencies in their reasoning and achieve deeper understanding.

Socrates compared himself to a "midwife" - he didn't "give birth to" knowledge but helped others "birth" understanding from their own minds.

1.2 Core Principles

Principle	Description
Elenchus	Central technique - examining, refuting, cross-examining beliefs
Aporia	State of "puzzlement" when recognizing contradictions - starting point of true learning
Profession of ignorance	"I know that I know nothing" - intellectual humility
Collaborative dialogue	Not one-way teaching but joint pursuit of truth

1.3 Implementation Process

1. INITIATION
   └── Ask foundational question (e.g., "What is virtue?")

2. EXPLORATION
   └── Request definition/clarification from interlocutor

3. COUNTER-EXAMINATION
   └── Question consistency
   └── Present counterexamples

4. APORIA
   └── Interlocutor recognizes contradictions in reasoning

5. REDEFINITION
   └── Adjust, expand, or abandon initial beliefs

6. ITERATION
   └── Return to steps 2-5 until deeper understanding is achieved

1.4 Modern Applications

Legal education: Dominant method in law schools (especially in the US)
Psychotherapy: Cognitive Therapy, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT)
Critical thinking development: Helps students evaluate their own assumptions
AI/Chatbots: Applied to improve conversational guidance capabilities

1.5 Types of Socratic Questions

Clarification: "Can you explain further?"
Probing assumptions: "What are you assuming here?"
Probing evidence: "What evidence supports that claim?"
Questioning viewpoints: "Are there alternative perspectives?"
Probing implications: "If that's true, then what?"
Questions about questions: "Why is this question important?"

Part 2: Superpowers - Claude Code Skills Library

2.1 Overview

Superpowers is a comprehensive skills library for Claude Code, created by Jesse Vincent (obra). It's a complete software development workflow system with over 20+ battle-tested skills.

Repository: https://github.com/obra/superpowersStars: ~8.5k ⭐ Forks: ~700+

2.2 Core Philosophy

Principle	Meaning
Test-Driven Development	Write tests first, always
Systematic over ad-hoc	Process over guesswork
Complexity reduction	Simplicity is the primary goal
Evidence over claims	Verify before declaring completion
Domain over implementation	Work at problem level, not solution level

2.3 Main Workflow

┌─────────────────┐
│  /brainstorm    │  ← Socratic design refinement
└────────┬────────┘
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│  /write-plan    │  ← Detailed implementation plan
└────────┬────────┘
         │
         ▼
┌─────────────────┐
│ /execute-plan   │  ← Batch execution with checkpoints
└─────────────────┘

2.4 Skills Structure

Testing Skills (`skills/testing/`)

test-driven-development - RED-GREEN-REFACTOR cycle
condition-based-waiting - Async test patterns
testing-anti-patterns - Common pitfalls to avoid

Debugging Skills (`skills/debugging/`)

systematic-debugging - 4-phase root cause process
root-cause-tracing - Find the real problem
verification-before-completion - Ensure it's actually fixed
defense-in-depth - Multiple validation layers

Collaboration Skills (`skills/collaboration/`)

brainstorming - Socratic design refinement ⭐
writing-plans - Detailed implementation plans
executing-plans - Batch execution with checkpoints
dispatching-parallel-agents - Concurrent subagent workflows
requesting-code-review - Pre-review checklist
receiving-code-review - Responding to feedback

Development Skills

using-git-worktrees - Parallel development branches
finishing-a-development-branch - Merge/PR decision workflow
subagent-driven-development - Fast iteration with quality gates

Meta Skills (`skills/meta/`)

writing-skills - Create new skills following best practices
testing-skills-with-subagents - Validate skill quality
using-superpowers - Introduction to the skills system

2.5 Brainstorming Skill - Applying Socratic Method

Purpose: Transform rough ideas into complete designs through collaborative dialogue.

How it works:

Context Understanding
- Understand current project context
- Gather necessary information (autonomous recon)
Collaborative Questioning (Socratic)
- Ask one question at a time - don't overwhelm
- Prioritize multiple choice when possible
- Explore 2-3 alternatives before deciding
Incremental Validation
- Present design in small sections (200-300 words)
- Validate each part before continuing
Design Document
- Save result as design document
- Commit to git

Important principles:

YAGNI ruthlessly - Eliminate unnecessary features
One question at a time - Don't overwhelm the user
Recommendations-driven - Agent makes recommendations, doesn't push decisions to user

2.6 Installation

bash

# In Claude Code
/plugin marketplace add obra/superpowers-marketplace
/plugin install superpowers@superpowers-marketplace

# Restart Claude Code
# Verify with /help

2.7 Key Highlights

Auto-activating skills based on context
Mandatory workflows - not suggestions, but requirements
TDD (RED-GREEN-REFACTOR) deeply integrated
Git worktrees for parallel development
Subagent-driven development for fast iteration
Self-improving - Claude can create new skills

Part 3: Connecting Socratic Method ↔ Superpowers

3.1 Applying Socratic Method in AI Coding

Superpowers applies Socratic Method in the brainstorming skill:

Socratic Method	Superpowers Brainstorming
Clarifying questions	"What are you trying to build?"
Probing assumptions	"What cases need to be handled?"
Explore alternatives	"Here are 2-3 approaches..."
Incremental validation	Present design section by section
Aporia → Understanding	User realizes actual requirements

3.2 Why Is It Effective?

Combats "jump to code" - Forces thinking before coding
Knowledge elicitation - Extracts tacit knowledge from user
Requirement refinement - Clarifies vague requirements
Buy-in - User "owns" the solution because they contributed
Error prevention - Catches issues early in design

3.3 Example Workflow

User: "I need an email validator"

Claude (Socratic brainstorming):
├── "What types of emails do you need to validate?"
│   └── Standard, subdomains, internationalized?
├── "Do you need to support '+' addressing?"
│   └── e.g., user+tag@example.com
├── "How strict should validation be?"
│   └── RFC 5321 compliance vs practical?
└── "Output format: boolean, error message, or parsed parts?"

→ Result: Detailed design document with identified edge cases

Research: Socratic Method & Superpowers Plugin ​

Part 1: Socratic Method ​

1.1 Origins and Definition ​

1.2 Core Principles ​

1.3 Implementation Process ​

1.4 Modern Applications ​

1.5 Types of Socratic Questions ​

Part 2: Superpowers - Claude Code Skills Library ​

2.1 Overview ​

2.2 Core Philosophy ​

2.3 Main Workflow ​

2.4 Skills Structure ​

Testing Skills (skills/testing/) ​

Debugging Skills (skills/debugging/) ​

Collaboration Skills (skills/collaboration/) ​

Development Skills ​

Meta Skills (skills/meta/) ​

2.5 Brainstorming Skill - Applying Socratic Method ​

2.6 Installation ​

2.7 Key Highlights ​

Part 3: Connecting Socratic Method ↔ Superpowers ​

3.1 Applying Socratic Method in AI Coding ​

3.2 Why Is It Effective? ​

3.3 Example Workflow ​

References ​