CRITICAL THINKING - REASON AND
EVIDENCE D265 KEY TERMS EXAM
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Burden Shifting Fallacy - Answer-When one decides that someone else must prove
them wrong when in reality they are the person with the burden of proof: one should
prove oneself right.
Ad Hominen Attack - Answer-attack on the arguer instead of the person. (Ad Hominem
is Latin for "against the person")
Representative Bias - Answer-the tendency to generalize from a small sample or a
single event
confirmation bias - Answer-Is someone accepting or rejecting information?
Are they doing so because the information agrees or disagrees with what they already
believe?
Anchoring - Answer-Does someone in the scenario have a first impression of
something?
Are they encountering new information about that thing?
Are they continuing to believe their first impression is correct no matter what the new
information says?
Availability - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario making a decision?
• Are they basing that decision only on easily available information or the first
information that comes to mind for them?
Selection - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario using a single example or a few
examples to draw a conclusion about a larger group?
• Are the examples they chose NOT randomly selected from the ENTIRE group they
drew the conclusion about?
Representativeness - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario drawing a conclusion about
an individual person or thing?
• Are they drawing a conclusion that that individual or thing belongs to a specific larger
group?
EVIDENCE D265 KEY TERMS EXAM
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Burden Shifting Fallacy - Answer-When one decides that someone else must prove
them wrong when in reality they are the person with the burden of proof: one should
prove oneself right.
Ad Hominen Attack - Answer-attack on the arguer instead of the person. (Ad Hominem
is Latin for "against the person")
Representative Bias - Answer-the tendency to generalize from a small sample or a
single event
confirmation bias - Answer-Is someone accepting or rejecting information?
Are they doing so because the information agrees or disagrees with what they already
believe?
Anchoring - Answer-Does someone in the scenario have a first impression of
something?
Are they encountering new information about that thing?
Are they continuing to believe their first impression is correct no matter what the new
information says?
Availability - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario making a decision?
• Are they basing that decision only on easily available information or the first
information that comes to mind for them?
Selection - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario using a single example or a few
examples to draw a conclusion about a larger group?
• Are the examples they chose NOT randomly selected from the ENTIRE group they
drew the conclusion about?
Representativeness - Answer-• Is someone in the scenario drawing a conclusion about
an individual person or thing?
• Are they drawing a conclusion that that individual or thing belongs to a specific larger
group?
