When we say that someone is friendly, we could predict that they will have an easy time making friends. If we also say that we know someone is friendly because they have an easy time making friends, which logical fallacy have we committed?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This is an example of circular reasoning, because the explanation itself relies on the conclusion being true. We are saying that someone is friendly because they make friends easily, and then using the fact that they make friends easily to support the claim that they are friendly. It is circular because it doesn't truly provide any new information to support the initial claim that the person is friendly.

When We Say That Someone Is Friendly, We Could Predict