Critical Thinking & Argument Evaluation Flashcards

A politician claims: 'Crime rates fell 15% after we passed the new law, so the law clearly reduced crime.' What is the primary flaw in this reasoning?

Answer: Correlation does not establish causation

The argument assumes the law caused the decline without ruling out other possible explanations, confusing correlation with causation.

Which of the following is an example of a hasty generalization?

Answer: 'I met two rude people from that city, so everyone there must be rude'

Drawing a broad conclusion about an entire group based on just two examples is a hasty generalization.

An argument contains the following premise: 'Everyone agrees that this policy is harmful.' What assumption is this statement making?

Answer: Universal agreement exists, with no dissenting views

The phrase 'everyone agrees' falsely assumes unanimous consensus, which is almost never verifiable.

Which type of evidence most strongly supports a causal claim in a scientific argument?

Answer: Results of a randomized controlled experiment

A randomized controlled experiment is the gold standard for establishing causation by isolating variables.

Read the argument: 'You should not take advice about nutrition from Dr. Smith because she is overweight.' This is an example of which fallacy?

Answer: Ad hominem

Attacking the person's character or appearance rather than their argument is the ad hominem fallacy.

A conclusion follows necessarily from its premises if and only if:

Answer: It is impossible for the premises to be true and the conclusion false

Deductive validity means the conclusion cannot be false when all premises are true.

Which of the following best describes a 'false dilemma'?

Answer: Presenting two options as the only possibilities when others exist

A false dilemma artificially limits the options to two when more alternatives exist.