Caliper Assessment Verbal Reasoning and Critical Thinking 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: You read the following: 'No projects that exceed budget are approved. This project was approved.' What can you logically conclude?
- The project is highly profitable
- This project did not exceed budget (Correct answer)
- The project manager is very skilled
- Budget rules do not apply to this project
Correct answer: This project did not exceed budget
Since no over-budget projects are approved and this project was approved, it must logically follow that it did not exceed budget.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes 'confirmation bias' as it relates to critical thinking?
- Seeking out information that confirms your existing beliefs while ignoring contradictory evidence (Correct answer)
- Confirming facts with multiple sources before drawing conclusions
- Using data to confirm a hypothesis in a scientific experiment
- Validating a decision by consulting with a team before acting
Correct answer: Seeking out information that confirms your existing beliefs while ignoring contradictory evidence
Confirmation bias is the tendency to favor information that supports pre-existing beliefs and to discount evidence that challenges them.
Question 3: A passage reads: 'Highly engaged employees are 21% more productive. Our company has high engagement scores.' Which conclusion is best supported?
- Our company's productivity is exactly 21% above the industry average
- Our company's productivity is likely higher than companies with low engagement (Correct answer)
- High engagement guarantees the highest productivity in the industry
- Productivity and engagement are unrelated metrics
Correct answer: Our company's productivity is likely higher than companies with low engagement
The data supports a likely productivity advantage over low-engagement companies, but does not guarantee a specific figure or rank above all competitors.
Question 4: When reading a business report, identifying the author's main argument, supporting evidence, and underlying assumptions is a process known as:
- Summary writing
- Active reading and critical analysis (Correct answer)
- Passive information retrieval
- Semantic mapping
Correct answer: Active reading and critical analysis
Active reading combined with critical analysis involves deliberately identifying the argument structure, the quality of evidence, and the assumptions that underpin the author's claims.
Question 5: Which statement most accurately reflects a 'false dichotomy' fallacy in workplace reasoning?
- 'Either we cut costs dramatically or the company will certainly fail.' (Correct answer)
- 'We should consider several cost-reduction strategies before making a decision.'
- 'The data shows two main cost drivers we need to address.'
- 'Cost reduction is one of several priorities for this quarter.'
Correct answer: 'Either we cut costs dramatically or the company will certainly fail.'
A false dichotomy presents only two options when other alternatives exist; the statement ignores many possible strategies between drastic cuts and failure.
Question 6: In critical thinking, the term 'premise' refers to:
- The final conclusion of an argument
- A statement offered as evidence or reason to support a conclusion (Correct answer)
- An unverified claim made without any supporting data
- The emotional appeal used to persuade an audience
Correct answer: A statement offered as evidence or reason to support a conclusion
A premise is a foundational statement or piece of evidence that supports the conclusion of an argument.
Question 7: A colleague argues: 'We've always done client reviews quarterly, so we shouldn't change to monthly reviews.' This is an example of which fallacy?
- Slippery slope
- Appeal to tradition (Correct answer)
- False analogy
- Circular reasoning
Correct answer: Appeal to tradition
An appeal to tradition argues that something is correct or better simply because it has been done that way historically, without evaluating whether it is still the best approach.
Caliper Assessment Verbal Reasoning and Critical Thinking 2
You read the following: 'No projects that exceed budget are approved.
This project was approved.' What can you logically conclude?