ISAT Argument Evaluation and Flaws 4

Question 1

'Either you support this new law, or you want criminals to go free.' This statement is an example of:

Accepted Answer

False dichotomy

Answer

A false dichotomy presents only two options when other alternatives exist.

Question 2

A study finds that cities with more hospitals have higher death rates. Which conclusion is most logically sound?

Accepted Answer

Sicker people go to cities with more hospitals, explaining the correlation

Answer

The higher death rates likely reflect that very ill patients congregate in cities with specialist hospitals, not that hospitals cause death.

Question 3

Which of the following best describes 'circular reasoning' (begging the question)?

Accepted Answer

Using a premise that assumes the truth of the conclusion

Answer

Circular reasoning embeds the conclusion within the premises, making the argument self-referential rather than logically valid.

Question 4

An argument concludes that teenagers are irresponsible based on the actions of three teenagers in the news. This is best described as:

Accepted Answer

Hasty generalisation

Answer

Drawing a broad conclusion from an unrepresentative or very small sample is a hasty generalisation.

Question 5

Which feature of an argument most directly indicates it contains a 'red herring'?

Accepted Answer

Information introduced that distracts from the actual issue being debated

Answer

A red herring introduces irrelevant information to divert attention away from the real point of contention.

ISAT - International Student Admissions Test Practice Test