Deck 8: Evaluating Arguments and Truth Claims

Question 1

Attempting to show that a general claim is false by producing one or more examples or exceptions that demonstrate that the claim is false is known as _____.

A) faulty implication
B) the countervailing evidence strategy
C) refutation by counterexample
D) selective targeting

Answer 1

refutation by counterexample

Question 2

According to the principle of rational acceptance, it is generally reasonable to accept an unsupported claim if _____.

A) we agree strongly with the claim
B) All of the answers are correct
C) the claim is consistent with our personal values and religious beliefs
D) the claim comes from a credible source that we have no good reason to doubt

Answer 2

the claim comes from a credible source that we have no good reason to doubt

Question 3

Which of the following should we NOT ask in evaluating an argument?

A) Is the argument complete?
B) Is the arguer motivated by a desire for personal gain?
C) Is the reasoning correct?
D) Are the premises true?

Answer 3

Is the arguer motivated by a desire for personal gain?

Question 4

An individual can demonstrate that a premise is false or dubious by _____.

A) pointing out that the premise is based on personal experience rather than a reliable fact
B) noting that the premise is self-contradictory
C) showing that the premise cannot be validated by an expert
D) pointing out that the premise is dependent on some other premise in the argument

Question 5

Which of the following questions should be asked while evaluating the sufficiency of an argument's supporting premises?

A) Are all the premises logically consistent?
B) Are all the premises true?
C) All of the answers are correct
D) Does the argument omit any crucial countervailing evidence?

Question 6

To refute an argument is merely to challenge or criticize it.

Question 7

From the standpoint of critical thinking, a good argument should be _____.

A) either deductively sound or inductively cogent
B) None of the answers are correct
C) deductively sound or inductively cogent
D) clear

Question 8

One can show that an argument is poorly reasoned by showing that it is _____.

A) inductively cogent
B) deductively weak
C) inductively invalid
D) deductively invalid

Question 9

From the standpoint of critical thinking, an argument can be a good argument even if it lacks literary or rhetorical merit.

Question 10

Never to believe without sufficient evidence and never to believe more strongly than the evidence warrants are the watchwords of the wise critical thinkers.

Question 11

We may have good reason to doubt the credibility of a source if _____.

A) the issue is not one that can be settled by expert opinion
B) None of the answers are correct
C) the source is not a genuine expert or authority on the topic he or she is discussing and the issue is not one that can be settled by expert opinion
D) the source is not a genuine expert or authority on the topic he or she is discussing

Question 12

Which of the following should we ask in evaluating an argument?

A) All of the answers are correct
B) Does the arguer commit any logical fallacies?
C) Is the arguer an ethical person?
D) Does the arguer practice what he or she preaches?

Question 13

Attempting to show that a statement is false by proving that it logically implies something that is clearly false or absurd is known as _____.

A) reducing to the absurd ( reductio ad absurdum)
B) conditional disproof
C) false entailment
D) refutation by counterexample

Question 14

A deductive argument can be a poor argument even if it is logically valid.

Question 15

From a critical thinking standpoint, an argument can be a good argument even if it is seriously lacking in clarity, precision, relevance, and completeness.

Question 16

An argument can be refuted by showing _____.

A) that the arguer is lying about something
B) that the premises provide adequate logical support for the conclusion
C) that a premise, or critical group of premises, is false or dubious
D) All of the answers are correct

Question 17

A good argument should neither be deductively sound nor inductively cogent.

Question 18

Practically speaking, an argument is "good" if the reader or listener agrees with it.

Question 19

Generally, we should be cautious about accepting a claim on authority if it comes from a source who is speaking outside his or her area of expertise.

Question 20

Which of the following are the most important questions to ask in assessing the logic of an argument?

A) All of the answers are correct
B) Are the premises relevant to the conclusion?
C) Are the premises sufficient to support the conclusion?
D) If the argument is deductive, does the conclusion follow necessarily from the premises?

Question 21

From the standpoint of critical thinking, a good argument is a persuasive argument.

Question 22

In general, it is reasonable to accept an unsupported claim as true when the claim does not conflict with personal experiences that we have no good reason to doubt.

Question 23

According to the text, the general principle we should use in deciding whether to accept an unsupported claim is _____.

A) the justification principle
B) the principle of rational acceptance
C) the credibility principle
D) the warrant principle

Question 24

According to the text, most of us _____.

A) None of the answers are correct
B) place too much confidence in our personal experiences
C) place too much confidence in our background beliefs
D) place too much confidence in our personal experiences and place too much confidence in our background beliefs

Question 25

Generally speaking, it is reasonable to accept a claim if _____.

A) the claim does not conflict with personal experiences that we have no good reason to doubt and the claim comes from a credible source
B) None of the answers are correct
C) the claim does not conflict with personal experiences that we have no good reason to doubt
D) the claim comes from a credible source

Question 26

An argument's _____ are those that are necessary to support the argument's conclusion.

A) critical premises
B) None of the answers are correct
C) logical supports
D) sine qua non reasons

Question 27

Picking out those premises that are essential to an argument's success and attempting to refute as many as necessary to knock out the conclusion's support is known as _____.

A) cherry picking
B) selective targeting
C) reductio ad absurdum
D) argument culling