Logical Reasoning
Logical reasoning is the process of defining whether a certain statement is true or false. Logic is mostly concerned by separating incorrect reasoning from correct reasoning. Normally we distinguish three different types of reasoning processes all resulting in a different kind of logic, namely deduction, induction and abduction or deductive reasoning, inductive reasoning and abductive reasoning.
Deductive Reasoning
Deductive reasoning is the most obvious and straightforward form of reasoning. It means determining the conclusion in a logic reasoning process. It consists of using the rule and its precondition to make a conclusion. Example: “When it is very cold, the river freezes. It is very cold therefore, the river is frozen.” This type of reasoning is commonly associated with for example mathematics.
Inductive Reasoning
Inductive reasoning means determining the rule. It is learning the rule after numerous examples of the conclusion following the precondition. Example: “The river was frozen every time it was very cold. Therefore, when it is very cold, the river freezes.” This type of reasoning is commonly used in modern sciences like physics and chemistry.
Abductive Reasoning
Abductive reasoning stands for determining the precondition. In abductive reasoning the conclusion and the rule are used to determine the precondition. Example: “When it is very cold, the river freezes. The river is frozen, therefore, it may be very cold.” This form of reasoning is often used by the police and detectives to solve crimes or in health care to determine the cause of an illness
Formal and Informal Logic Reasoning
To make matters even more complicated we can not only distinguish between different types of logic but we can also distinguish between two different ways of doing logic namely, formal logic and informal logic.
In formal logic the reasoning process is always translated from an existing language(in our case English) to a symbolic language (for example a sketch, a drawing or a formula). It then manipulates those symbols, sketches, drawings and formulas to find out how good the reasoning process is. In informal logic no such translation process is involved. We simply examine and evaluate the reasoning process in our own language.
Combining the formal and informal way of doing logic with the previous assumption that there are 3 types of logic leads to the conclusion that we can distinguish as many as 6 different kinds of logic namely:
Different kinds of logic
- Formal deductive logic
- Informal deductive logic
- Formal inductive logic
- Informal inductive logic
- Formal abductive logic
- Informal abductive logic
Wrong can be Right Logically
One of the most important things before you undergo a logical reasoning test is that what seems to be an obviously wrong statement can be logically correct in a certain context. The correct answer to a test question is based on analyzing the arguments on a logical basis and not as to the correctness of the argument or assumption itself. Let us try to clarify this with an example: Assume the following statements are true
Claim 1: “Eating a lot makes you lose weight.”
Claim 2: “Craig is obese.”
Question: “How can we make Craig lose weight?”
Answer: “By making him eat a lot.”
As you can see in this context the answer of making Craig eat a lot to lose weight is correct, however obviously in real life eating a lot will not make you lose weight.
You need to understand that the correct answer to any given logical reasoning argument requires the proper identification of relationships between assertions (typically facts and opinions), not the accuracy of those assertions.
Logical Reasoning in Aptitude Tests
Logical reasoning generally is a very important section in aptitude tests and/or IQ tests. Logical reasoning is universal and it is used in every form of reasoning, in every job, in every field every day. So if you have good logical reasoning skills you should be able to apply this everywhere. Better developed logical reasoning skills make you able to understand, analyze, and to question arguments based on statements or questions. These skills are in general used to identify clues that make an argument weaker, or to recognize a particular assumption. Logical reasoning can be tested in several different ways, however here on Fibonicci we offer the most important and most commonly accepted form of logical reasoning namely syllogisms. Please click on one of the following pages to continue:
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