AWA Identifying Logical Fallacies 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A politician argues: 'My opponent has never run a business, so his economic policies will fail.' Which fallacy does this commit?
- Straw man
- Ad hominem (circumstantial) (Correct answer)
- False dichotomy
- Appeal to authority
Correct answer: Ad hominem (circumstantial)
This is a circumstantial ad hominem — attacking the opponent's background rather than evaluating the policies on their merits.
Question 2: An argument concludes: 'Studies show coffee drinkers are more productive, therefore drinking coffee causes productivity.' What is the error?
- Post hoc ergo propter hoc
- Correlation-causation fallacy (Correct answer)
- Hasty generalization
- Begging the question
Correct answer: Correlation-causation fallacy
Inferring causation from correlation is the correlation-causation fallacy; the link may be explained by confounding variables.
Question 3: 'Everyone I know prefers streaming over cable, so most Americans must prefer streaming.' This reasoning is flawed because it commits:
- False analogy
- Slippery slope
- Hasty generalization (Correct answer)
- Appeal to tradition
Correct answer: Hasty generalization
Drawing a broad conclusion from a small, unrepresentative sample is a hasty generalization.
Question 4: A debater says: 'If we allow students to retake one exam, soon they'll demand to retake every assignment and grades will become meaningless.' This is an example of:
- Slippery slope (Correct answer)
- Red herring
- Appeal to consequences
- Equivocation
Correct answer: Slippery slope
The slippery slope fallacy assumes that one moderate step will inevitably lead to extreme consequences without evidence.
Question 5: Which of the following best illustrates the 'appeal to ignorance' fallacy?
- 'Experts agree that this drug is safe.'
- 'No one has proven ghosts don't exist, so they must be real.' (Correct answer)
- 'This has worked for centuries, so it must be correct.'
- 'Either you support the bill or you hate the environment.'
Correct answer: 'No one has proven ghosts don't exist, so they must be real.'
Appeal to ignorance (argumentum ad ignorantiam) treats the absence of disproof as proof of a claim.
Question 6: An essay argues: 'Freedom of speech is essential. Therefore, companies should be forced to host any speech on their platforms.' The logical error here is:
- Equivocation
- Straw man
- Non sequitur (Correct answer)
- Bandwagon
Correct answer: Non sequitur
The conclusion does not logically follow from the premise — the principle of free speech does not automatically obligate private companies.
Question 7: When an arguer redefines 'success' mid-argument to avoid a counterexample, they are committing:
- Moving the goalposts (Correct answer)
- False equivalence
- Circular reasoning
- Bandwagon fallacy
Correct answer: Moving the goalposts
Moving the goalposts involves changing the criteria for success after the original standard has been met or challenged.
AWA Identifying Logical Fallacies 2
A politician argues: 'My opponent has never run a business, so his economic policies will fail.' Which fallacy does this commit?