Common Fallacies

Fallacies and Critical Thinking

"Identifying errors in the way an argument is presented is a key part of critical thinking."

The Fallacy of Jumping from Correlation to Cause

"This fallacy occurs when you can see two phenomena are related and you conclude that one phenomenon causes the other. For example, two trends that occur at the same time exist in a cause-effect relationship.

The trends of increased shark attacks and increased ice cream sales occur at the same time. Therefore, shark attacks are caused by increased ice cream sales or vice versa.

Even if the structure of an argument is logical, we need to check that all the premises are sound. You might have identified that the first premise was problematic. We can't assume correlation implies causation. It might be the case that the two trends are completely coincidental or there might be an unexamined third factor, which is causing both trends independently. For example, the onset of warmer weather could be the cause of increased shark attacks as more people swim in the open at that time. Warmer weather could also explain an increase in ice cream sales."

Hasty Generalization

"A hasty generalization draws a conclusion about a class based on too few or atypical examples. Generalizations are arguments that make a general comment based on specific examples. Unwarranted generalizations are called stereotypes. For example, “Homeless men are middle-aged men.” This claim might be based on someone's own limited observations or experiences of homeless people, which have been extended to a comment about all homeless people. Generalizations that are personal or anecdotal, or based on a small sample size are problematic and should not be used as evidence for an academic argument."

The Straw Man Fallacy

"Let suppose that someone has made the argument that a solution to the problem of homelessness in Australia requires investment in affordable housing and someone else has counter-argued giving homeless people free houses may encourage more people to become homeless. A counterargument contains the straw man fallacy, if it misrepresents the original argument. In the previous example, this occurred when the argument for investment in affordable housing, we substituted for giving homeless people free houses.

At university, when you're asked to respond to someone else's position, make sure that you represent their position accurately, so your counter-argument is relevant. If you quote someone out of context or simply oversimplify their argument in order to weaken it, you are committing the straw man fallacy."

Fallacy Fallacy

"An argument may still be true even if it commits a logical fallacy. Otherwise, you commit the Fallacy fallacy and disregard conclusions that are true, simply because they were drawn from a weak argument."

SOURCE

https://www.coursera.org/learn/critical-thinking-skills/home/info

VOCABULARY

Cause [kɔːz]- a person, event, or thing that makes something happen

Causation - the action of causing something to happen or exist

Vice versa [vaɪs ˈvɜːsə] - used to say that the opposite of a situation you have just described is also true

Imply - if a fact, event etc implies something, it shows that it is likely to be true

Coincidental [kəʊˌɪnsɪˈdɛntl] -happening completely by chance without being planned

Atypical [eɪˈtɪpɪk(ə)l]

Stereotype [ˈstɪərɪətaɪp] - a belief or idea of what a particular type of person or thing is like. Stereotypes are often unfair or untrue

Straw- the dried stems of wheat or similar plants that animals sleep on, and that are used for making things such as baskets, hats etc. Straw man - a weak opponent or imaginary argument that can easily be defeated.