Texas Civil Service Exam Logical and Deductive Reasoning 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A report log shows entries every 6 hours starting at 6:00 AM. How many entries are logged in a full 24-hour day?
- 3
- 4 (Correct answer)
- 5
- 6
Correct answer: 4
Entries at 6 AM, 12 PM, 6 PM, and 12 AM give exactly 4 entries in 24 hours.
Question 2: Premises: No civilian employee carries a weapon. Alex carries a weapon. What must be true?
- Alex is a civilian employee
- Alex is not a civilian employee (Correct answer)
- Alex violated the rule
- Alex recently became an officer
Correct answer: Alex is not a civilian employee
Since no civilian carries a weapon and Alex does, Alex cannot be a civilian employee (modus tollens).
Question 3: Three shifts cover 24 hours equally. Shift A starts at midnight, Shift B follows Shift A, and Shift C follows Shift B. An incident at 7:30 PM falls under which shift?
- Shift A
- Shift B
- Shift C (Correct answer)
- Between Shift B and C
Correct answer: Shift C
Each shift covers 8 hours: A = 12 AM–8 AM, B = 8 AM–4 PM, C = 4 PM–12 AM; 7:30 PM falls in Shift C.
Question 4: An officer's argument: 'I've responded to calls in District 7 for five years without a major incident, so District 7 is always safe.' This reasoning is flawed because:
- Five years is too long a period
- Past safety does not guarantee future safety (Correct answer)
- District 7 data is irrelevant
- The officer lacks authority to assess safety
Correct answer: Past safety does not guarantee future safety
Inductive reasoning from past experience cannot guarantee future outcomes, especially in dynamic public safety environments.
Question 5: Analogy: Badge is to Officer as License is to ___?
- Vehicle
- Driver (Correct answer)
- Road
- Traffic
Correct answer: Driver
A badge authorizes an officer just as a license authorizes a driver — both are credentials for their respective roles.
Question 6: A suspect is described as: tall, wearing a red jacket, and carrying a blue bag. Of four individuals spotted, which matches all three criteria?
- Short, red jacket, blue bag
- Tall, blue jacket, blue bag
- Tall, red jacket, green bag
- Tall, red jacket, blue bag (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Tall, red jacket, blue bag
Only the fourth individual matches all three descriptors: tall, red jacket, and blue bag.
Question 7: The statement 'Some officers are detectives' logically allows which conclusion?
- All officers are detectives
- No officers are detectives
- At least one officer is a detective (Correct answer)
- All detectives are officers
Correct answer: At least one officer is a detective
'Some' in logic means at least one, so at least one officer must be a detective.
Texas Civil Service Exam Logical and Deductive Reasoning 4
A report log shows entries every 6 hours starting at 6:00 AM.
How many entries are logged in a full 24-hour day?