Test Bank for The Power of Critical Thinking, 6th Canadian Edition by Chris MacDonald
CHAPTER 1 TEST BANK
The Power of Critical Thinking
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In what sense is critical thinking systematic?
a) It leads to better understanding.
b) It is caused by a state of mind.
c) It involves distinct procedures and methods.
d) It has practical implications.
2. When is a belief is worth accepting?
a) When we have good reasons to accept it
b) When it has not been proven wrong
c) When it is accepted by our peers
d) When it is consistent with our needs
3. Which of the following is true about opinions?
a) They are all irrational.
b) They help you make your way through the world.
c) They cannot be critically evaluated because they are subjective.
d) They are all equally valid.
4. What is the function of “rational standards”?
a) To judge beliefs on a purely subjective rationality
b) To judge beliefs based on culturally sensitive relativism
c) To judge beliefs based on their emotive contents
d) To judge beliefs on their reasoned support
5. Which of the following is true about cognitive biases?
a) They only occur in the case of perception.
b) They only occur in the case of memory.
c) They are common errors of reasoning that psychologists have studied.
d) They are very rare in humans.
6. If you passively accept beliefs that have been handed to you by your culture, then those beliefs
are what?
a) Critically examined
b) Not really yours
c) Worthy of rejection
d) Worthy of acceptance
7. What does the word critical in critical thinking refer to?
a) A fault-finding attitude
b) Attempts to win an argument
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
, c) Using careful judgement or judicious evaluation
d) A lack of respect for other people
8. Which term refers to any assertion that something is or is not the case?
a) Statement
b) Predicate
c) Argument
d) Premise
9. Which of the following is a statement?
a) What’s for dinner?
b) Toronto is the capital city of Canada.
c) Shut the window!
d) Passport please.
10. Which of the following is a statement?
a) Pass the salt, please.
b) My passport arrived just in time for me to fly to Europe.
c) Happy Birthday!
d) Say “Cheese.”
11. Which of the following is true of statements backed by good reasons?
a) They are deserving of weak acceptance.
b) They are beyond doubt.
c) They are to be believed with certainty.
d) They are worthy of strong acceptance.
12. What is a combination of statements, in which one is the conclusion, and the others are intended
to provide reasons for accepting the conclusion, called?
a) An argument
b) A premise
c) An illustration
d) An explanation
13. When you are unable to assign any substantial weight at all to the reasons for or against a
statement, what should you do?
a) Suspend judgement.
b) Flip a coin.
c) Accept it.
d) Reject it.
14. What term refers to a statement that the premises are intended to support?
a) An argument
b) An inference
c) An explanation
d) A conclusion
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
,15. What is a statement intended to provide reasons for accepting a conclusion called?
a) An illustration
b) An argument
c) A premise
d) An inference
16. Which term refers to a group of statements in which some of them (the premises) are intended
to support another of them (the conclusion)?
a) Argument
b) Chain argument
c) Claim
d) Reason
17. Which of the following best defines an argument?
a) A group of statements that support a conclusion and the conclusion that those statements
support
b) A disagreement about any topic
c) A statement, based on any information supportive of one position against another
d) One statement that leads to the acceptance of another statement
18. What is a conclusion?
a) The end
b) An opinion
c) An explanation
d) A statement that premises are intended to support
19. What is the mental process of reasoning from a premise or premises to a conclusion based on
those premises called?
a) An explanation
b) An argument
c) An illustration
d) An inference
20. What is inference?
a) The process of validating the truthfulness of premises
b) The process of evaluating arguments for validity
c) The process of reasoning from premises to a conclusion
d) The process of offering up false premises in an argument
21. What is the function of an explanation?
a) To try to show that a statement is in dispute
b) To try to prove that a statement is true
c) To try to show that something is the case
d) To try to show why or how something is the way it is
22. What is the difference between explanations and arguments?
a) An argument is successful only if your opponent is convinced, but an explanation can be
true even if your opponent does not believe it.
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
, b) Arguments give us reasons for believing that something is the case, while explanations tell us
why or how something is the case.
c) Explanations are a more reasonable practice.
d) Arguments take less time.
23. Which term refers to words that frequently accompany arguments and signal that a premise or
conclusion is present?
a) Indicator words
b) Argument components
c) Indicator verbs
d) Premises
24. Which of the following is NOT a series of premise indicators?
a) For the reason that, in as much as, as indicated by
b) For, the reason being, since
c) Because, in view of the fact, given that
d) As, due to the fact that, therefore
25. Which of the following is a premise indicator?
a) Since
b) Consequently
c) Therefore
d) Thus
26. Which of the following is NOT a series of conclusion indicators?
a) It must be that, as a result, which means that
b) Which implies that, consequently, it follows that
c) We can conclude that, so, hence
d) Due to the fact that, therefore, thus
27. Occasionally the conclusion of an argument can be disguised as what?
a) A cognitive bias
b) An indicator word
c) An explanation
d) A question
28. Which of the following is a conclusion indicator?
a) Since
b) Hence
c) Because
d) Given that
29. What is the best advice for anyone trying to uncover or dissect arguments?
a) Paraphrase the argument.
b) Determine the truth of premises.
c) Find the conclusion first.
d) Find the premises first.
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
CHAPTER 1 TEST BANK
The Power of Critical Thinking
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In what sense is critical thinking systematic?
a) It leads to better understanding.
b) It is caused by a state of mind.
c) It involves distinct procedures and methods.
d) It has practical implications.
2. When is a belief is worth accepting?
a) When we have good reasons to accept it
b) When it has not been proven wrong
c) When it is accepted by our peers
d) When it is consistent with our needs
3. Which of the following is true about opinions?
a) They are all irrational.
b) They help you make your way through the world.
c) They cannot be critically evaluated because they are subjective.
d) They are all equally valid.
4. What is the function of “rational standards”?
a) To judge beliefs on a purely subjective rationality
b) To judge beliefs based on culturally sensitive relativism
c) To judge beliefs based on their emotive contents
d) To judge beliefs on their reasoned support
5. Which of the following is true about cognitive biases?
a) They only occur in the case of perception.
b) They only occur in the case of memory.
c) They are common errors of reasoning that psychologists have studied.
d) They are very rare in humans.
6. If you passively accept beliefs that have been handed to you by your culture, then those beliefs
are what?
a) Critically examined
b) Not really yours
c) Worthy of rejection
d) Worthy of acceptance
7. What does the word critical in critical thinking refer to?
a) A fault-finding attitude
b) Attempts to win an argument
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
, c) Using careful judgement or judicious evaluation
d) A lack of respect for other people
8. Which term refers to any assertion that something is or is not the case?
a) Statement
b) Predicate
c) Argument
d) Premise
9. Which of the following is a statement?
a) What’s for dinner?
b) Toronto is the capital city of Canada.
c) Shut the window!
d) Passport please.
10. Which of the following is a statement?
a) Pass the salt, please.
b) My passport arrived just in time for me to fly to Europe.
c) Happy Birthday!
d) Say “Cheese.”
11. Which of the following is true of statements backed by good reasons?
a) They are deserving of weak acceptance.
b) They are beyond doubt.
c) They are to be believed with certainty.
d) They are worthy of strong acceptance.
12. What is a combination of statements, in which one is the conclusion, and the others are intended
to provide reasons for accepting the conclusion, called?
a) An argument
b) A premise
c) An illustration
d) An explanation
13. When you are unable to assign any substantial weight at all to the reasons for or against a
statement, what should you do?
a) Suspend judgement.
b) Flip a coin.
c) Accept it.
d) Reject it.
14. What term refers to a statement that the premises are intended to support?
a) An argument
b) An inference
c) An explanation
d) A conclusion
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
,15. What is a statement intended to provide reasons for accepting a conclusion called?
a) An illustration
b) An argument
c) A premise
d) An inference
16. Which term refers to a group of statements in which some of them (the premises) are intended
to support another of them (the conclusion)?
a) Argument
b) Chain argument
c) Claim
d) Reason
17. Which of the following best defines an argument?
a) A group of statements that support a conclusion and the conclusion that those statements
support
b) A disagreement about any topic
c) A statement, based on any information supportive of one position against another
d) One statement that leads to the acceptance of another statement
18. What is a conclusion?
a) The end
b) An opinion
c) An explanation
d) A statement that premises are intended to support
19. What is the mental process of reasoning from a premise or premises to a conclusion based on
those premises called?
a) An explanation
b) An argument
c) An illustration
d) An inference
20. What is inference?
a) The process of validating the truthfulness of premises
b) The process of evaluating arguments for validity
c) The process of reasoning from premises to a conclusion
d) The process of offering up false premises in an argument
21. What is the function of an explanation?
a) To try to show that a statement is in dispute
b) To try to prove that a statement is true
c) To try to show that something is the case
d) To try to show why or how something is the way it is
22. What is the difference between explanations and arguments?
a) An argument is successful only if your opponent is convinced, but an explanation can be
true even if your opponent does not believe it.
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
, b) Arguments give us reasons for believing that something is the case, while explanations tell us
why or how something is the case.
c) Explanations are a more reasonable practice.
d) Arguments take less time.
23. Which term refers to words that frequently accompany arguments and signal that a premise or
conclusion is present?
a) Indicator words
b) Argument components
c) Indicator verbs
d) Premises
24. Which of the following is NOT a series of premise indicators?
a) For the reason that, in as much as, as indicated by
b) For, the reason being, since
c) Because, in view of the fact, given that
d) As, due to the fact that, therefore
25. Which of the following is a premise indicator?
a) Since
b) Consequently
c) Therefore
d) Thus
26. Which of the following is NOT a series of conclusion indicators?
a) It must be that, as a result, which means that
b) Which implies that, consequently, it follows that
c) We can conclude that, so, hence
d) Due to the fact that, therefore, thus
27. Occasionally the conclusion of an argument can be disguised as what?
a) A cognitive bias
b) An indicator word
c) An explanation
d) A question
28. Which of the following is a conclusion indicator?
a) Since
b) Hence
c) Because
d) Given that
29. What is the best advice for anyone trying to uncover or dissect arguments?
a) Paraphrase the argument.
b) Determine the truth of premises.
c) Find the conclusion first.
d) Find the premises first.
The Power of Critical Thinking, Sixth Canadian Edition
© 2024
