Logical Reasoning Problem List
Point at Issue Questions
- Two speakers who disagree or point of disagreement. Use only information in the stimulus. Fact Test applies. - Examine the conclusion made by each speaker. Several incorrect answers: - Ethical vs Factual Statement: Argument that addresses ethical things cannot have a factual answer choice - Dual Agreement or Dual Disagreement: Statements where both speakers agree or disagree look attractive but the question asks about an issue which the two would disagree. - The View of One Speaker is Unknown: Only one view answers are always incorrect. Need to know both author's opinions. - Agree/Disagree Test: Double check contenders with a variation of the Fact Test. Correct answer will produce a response where one speaker will say "I agree" one speaker will say "I disagree" -Pay close attention to the conclusion. Helps to determine where each author stands.
Strengthen Questions
- Answer best supports/helps the conclusion - Question Stem: "which of the following If true... most strengthens/supports/justifies/most clearly helps" - Focus on the conclusion: Almost all correct answers will impact the conclusion - Answer traps: Opposite answers, Shell Game answers, Out of Scope answers - Strengthens the argument by 1% or 100% - Strengthen X : either has no effect on the argument or weakens it - Causality+Strengthen: answer will eliminate alternate causes for stated effect, show that when cause occurs, effect occurs, shows when cause doesn't occur, effect doesn't occur, eliminate reversed relationship or that data used to make causal statement is correct
Cannot Be True Questions
- Identify answer that cannot be true/impossible or is most weakened by information in argument - Use information in stimulus to prove answer. Answer will directly disagree with stimulus or consequence of stimulus. No new info that is not related or connected by stimulus - Four answer choices could be true. One cannot. - Question stem: 1. If the statements above are true which one of the following cannot be true. 2. If all the claims above are true then each could be true except. 3. if the statements above are true, which of the following must be false. - Do not contain an argument, they are fact pattern and you are tested on knowledge of facts. Conditional relationships in stimulus should cause you to actively seek answer that violates when the sufficient occurs the necessary also must occur. - Frequently occur: numbers and percentage questions. If sales remain constant but the share represented by those sales decreased then the overall sales in the market must have increased. - Conditional: many different scenarios could occur therefore looking for single answer that could never occur. Usually sufficient occurring and necessary not occurring.
Method of Reasoning Questions
- Answer will best describe the method used by the author to make the argument - Identify the local organization of the argument. Describe the argument in abstract terms. Can be valid or not. focus on answer that best describes the argument. - Select the answer choice that describes what occurred in the stimulus. Use the principles behind Fact Test: if answer did not occur or describe an event that happened in stimulus it is incorrect. - Watch out for partially true answers - Premise and conclusion indicators will help identify structure of argument. - Premise:fact, proposition or statement. Conclusion: statement or judgment from which a conclusion is made - Incorrect answers: New element answers. half right, half wrong. exaggerated answers(sometimes right), opposite answers, reverse answers. - Method of Reasoning Argument Part AP Questions: Cites specific portion of the stimulus and asks what role the cited portion plays in the structure. Some of these contain two conclusions. Main conclusion: Usually positioned in first couple sentences without conclusion indicator. Subsidiary/Secondary/Intermediate/Supporting conclusion will be last sentence with conclusion indicator. Beware of answers that describe a part of the argument that is not asked about in the question stem. -Counterexample: Used to disprove an idea by providing a similar situation. - Counterfactual: a conditional statement that goes against what we know to be the fact -No need to question or analyze the strength of the argument.. take a step back and see which answer choices best describe the argument
Evaluate the Argument Questions
- Asks you to find information that would best help to determine the logical validity of the argument presented in the stimulus - Must select the answer that decides whether the argument is good or bad - Information in stimulus is suspect, search for the reasoning error present. Accept answer choices as given. Task is to determine the validity of the argument - "The answer to which of the following would contribute most to an evaluation/judgment/asses of the argument" - Variance Test: Supplying two polar opposite responses posed in the answer choice. If different responses produce different effects on the conclusion then it is correct. One response should strengthen the argument and one response should weaken the argument - If the view does not change the answer is incorrect. - Look for the answer that would best help determine the logical validity of the argument presented in the stimulus. - Evaluate the Argument Questions: Use the Variance Test
Assumption Questions
- Assumptions are necessary for the condition to occur. - Question Stem: uses the word assumption/presupposition. does not use the word if or another sufficient condition indicator. - Assumptions play two roles: Supporter:finding the gap and connecting and closing the hole in the argument. Defender: protect the argument by eliminating ideas that could weaken the argument - Use Assumption Negation Technique to decide between contenders and turn it into Weaken Question. Logically negate the answer choice under consideration. The negated answer that weakens the argument will be the correct answer.
Parallel Reasoning Questions
- Find most similar structure to the reasoning in the stimulus. No inferences. Topics don't matter. Testing ability to spot overall structure of argument. Order doesn't matter. - Continuation of Method of Reasoning: first identify the argument then you must find answer with the same reasoning. Q stem reveals if it is valid or invalid. "Which of the following most closely parallel/exhibits pattern of reasoning/most parallel" - Contain either valid or invalid reasoning - BEWARE of question stem that asks you to identify both logical flaws in the stimulus. When this occurs there is always an incorrect answer that only contains one of the flaws. - Compare big picture elements: intent of the conclusion, force and use of the premises, relationship of the premises and the conclusion, soundness of the argument. - Abstract Fact Test: examining the general features of the arguments in the answer choice and match them to the argument in the stimulus - Elements that DO NOT need to be paralleled: Topic of the stimulus / the order of the presentation of the premises and conclusion - Elements that DO need to be paralleled: Method of Reasoning: the type of reasoning used that being conditional/causal or any other identifiable form Validity of the Argument: If the stimulus contains valid reasoning so will the the answer. The Conclusion: every PR contains an argument. matching based on certainty level or intent: must/never/always/should. The Premises: step to take after the conclusion. match the level of intent Elemental Attack: 1. Match the Method of Reasoning 2. Match the Conclusion 3. Match the Premise 4. Match the Validity of the Argument If the conclusion says would/could eliminate must/never answers If the answer contains valid reasoning and the stimulus is flawed then this is incorrect -Test of Abstraction: Last test is to take the statement into abstract simple terms and match the choices.
Weaken Questions
- Finding answer choice that undermines the author's argument as decisively as possible. Information in stimulus is suspect. Answer choices are accepted as given. Almost always contain an argument. - Focus on the conclusion. - Attack is not the same as destroy. - Would this answer choice make the author reconsider their position? - Common Weakening Scenarios: Incomplete Information: author fails to consider all possibilities, or relies upon info that is incomplete. Can be attacked by bringing up new information or possibilities Improper Comparison: attempts to compare two or more items that are essentially different Overly Broad Comparison: author draws conclusion that is broader or more expansive than that of which the premise supports -Incorrect Answer Traps: Opposite Answers: Do opposite of what is needed. Shell Game Answers: Very similar idea or concept but changed just enough to be wrong/still attractive BEWARE Out of Scope Answers: Simply miss the point of the argument and raise issues that are either not related to the argument -WeakenX: 4 incorrect answers will weaken. One correct answer will strengthen or have no meaning on the argument. -Conditional Reasoning stimulus + Weaken: look for answer that attacks the idea that the necessary condition is required.
Justify the Conclusion Questions
- Logically proves the conclusion of the argument. Perfect strengthen question. - Sufficient to prove the conclusion/make the conclusion follow logically - Question stem: uses the word if, states allows the conclusion to be properly draw, lessens the degree of justification - Mechanistic Approach: Any new element in the conclusion will appear in answer choice, elements common usually wont, elements new in premise may. - Link new elements in the premise and conclusion and ignore elements common to both. - Tricks to approach: rewording elements/distractor elements - Most contain conditional reasoning or contain number and percentages - FIB Justify Q: preceded by premise indicator. wording indicates you are expected to justify the conclusion
Main Point
- Look for Main Point q stem - Summarize the author's main point of view. must follow from the stimulus. -Watch out for could be true answers that do not cover what the main point is -Pay attention to what is the point of the overall passage. what is the author getting at. What holds not only true but essentially summarizes and tells what the author was getting at. - Several answers will be correct but fail to yield the main point - Incorrect answer choices: 1. Answers that are true but do not encapsulate the author's point 2. Answers that repeat premises of the argument -FIB Main Point: Contains a conclusion indicator that ultimately modifies the blank "Therefore_____../Thus_______/ is seems likely in the future________" -Each sentence begins with a conclusion indicator signaling you must supply the conclusion.
Resolve the Paradox Questions
- Presents a situation where two ideas or occurrences contradict each other. - No conclusion. Language of contradiction: But/However/Yet/Although/Paradoxically/ Surprisingly. - Answer choices should be accepted as true. Key words indicate you need to take action: Resolve/ Explain/Reconcile the problem with the paradox: Paradox/Discrepancy/Contradiction/Conflict/Puzzle - ResolveX: Four incorrect answers resolve or explain the situation and the correct answer will confuse the situation/or more likely have NO impact on the situation. - Answers that only destroy or disprove one side are wrong. You are not looking to disprove one side but rather find the cause. - Correct answer:Shows that both sides coexist. actively resolve the paradox. Will explain how the situation came to be or how they can coexist. - If stimulus contains a problem where two items are similar then an answer that explains a difference cannot be correct. If a stimulus contains a paradox where two items are different, then an answer that explains why they are similar cannot be correct. A similarity cannot explain a difference and a difference cannot explain a similarity. - *Address the facts of the situation. Reasonable solutions that do not meet the stated facts of the premises are incorrect. -1. Identify the Discrepancy -2. Use "Soft eyes" and solve the problem: be open to possibilities -3. Be confident and be aware of trap answers: trap answers will widen the discrepancy - Do not overlook an answer just because it has complex language and may be difficult to understand
Point of Agreement Questions
- Require you to identify the statement with which the two speakers would both agree. Asked to identify the point of agreement. - They may agree the statements are correct or they may agree the statements are incorrect. - Agree/Agree Test: both speakers would say yes I agree. - View of both speakers must be known
Flaw in the Reasoning Questions
- Same as Method of Reasoning with important exception that the question stem indicates the reasoning in the stimulus is flawed. - The premises don't give adequate support for the conclusion. Focus clearly on the relationship between the conclusion and its premises -Forget about actual truth, several answers are set up to trap you if you bring in outside knowledge -Deductive Reasoning: an argument where the premises give complete support for the conclusion. If the premises are true, the conclusion must bet true as well. - Inductive arguments: give some support for the conclusion. - Incorrect answer tricks: describe a portion of the stimulus but fail to identify the error in the reasoning - Errors in the use of evidence: - General Lack of Relevant Evidence: provide info that is irrelevant to their conclusion/or misuse information -Internal Contradiction: occurs when author makes conflicting statements - Overgeneralization: takes a small number of instances as if they support a broad conclusion - Errors in Assessing the Force of Evidence: Lack of evidence for a position takes position is false/lack of evidence against a position takes position as true/some evidence for a position is taken as true instead of just strengthening it/some evidence against a position is taken as false instead of just weakening it. - Source Argument/Ad Hominem: Attacks the person or source instead of the argument - Circular Reasoning: The premise and conclusion are identical - Conditional Reasoning Errors: if you identify conditional reasoning and asked a flaw question quickly scan for answer that contains sufficient/necessary/ or both. Look for Mistaken Negation/Reversal or required sufficient condition answer. - Mistaken Cause and Effect: quickly scan answers for one that contains cause, effect or both. Causal conclusions. look for flaws that include, assuming causal relationship based on sequence of events, assuming causal relationship when only a correlation exists, failure to consider alternate cause for the effect or effect and failure to consider events could be reversed.
Flaw in the Reasoning Question Continued
- Straw Man: Attempts to attack position by ignoring actual statements and distorts and refashions argument by making it weaker. - Appeal Fallacies: - Appeal to Authority: Uses the opinion of an authority in an attempt to persuade the reader - Appeal to Popular Opinion: States position is true because the majority believe it to be true. - Appeal to Emotion: Occurs when emotionally charged language is used to persuade - Survey Error: Could occur when the survey uses a biased sample, questions are improperly constructed, or respondents give inaccurate responses - Error of Composition: Assuming that because something is true of each of the parts of the whole it is true of the whole itself. - Error of Division: Presumes that what is true of a whole must also be true of each of its parts - Uncertain use of a term or concept: usually used as a stock answer. Using a term in a different way throughout the argument - False Analogy: when they use an analogy: comparison between two items that are too dissimilar to the original situation and shouldn't be applied - False Dilemma: Assumes that only two courses of action are available when there may be others. Don't mess this with when the author specifically states there are only two possibilities. *seen this as correct answer* assumed only two possible outcomes. "some voters may be neither strong supporters or weak supporters" - Time Shift Error: Assuming what is said in the past will hold true in the future. Will remain constant. Who knows. - Numbers and Percentage Errors: many errors in this category. Improperly equates a percentage with a definite quality or when an author uses quantity information to make a judgment about the percentage represented by that quantity
13 Logical Reasoning Types
1. Must Be True/Most Supported - Where? 2. Main Point 3. Point at Issue/ Point of Agreement 4. Assumption 5. Justify the Conclusion 6. Strengthen/Support 7. Resolve the Paradox 8. Weaken 9. Method of Reasoning 10. Flaw in the Reasoning 11. Parallel Reasoning/Parallel Flaw 12. Evaluate the Argument 13. Cannot Be True
The following questions have the tests you can apply to the remaining contender choices:
Assumption Questions: Use the Assumption Negation Technique Justify the Conclusion Questions: Use the Justify Formula Evaluate the Argument Questions: Use the Variance Test Point at Issue Questions: Use the Agree/Disagree Test Point of Agreement Questions: Use the Agree/Agree Test
