how to solve critical reasoning questions?

Answer 1

Critical Reasoning tests your ability to evaluate the merits of an argument or opinion. Most commonly, it concerns your ability to strengthen or weaken a given argument or to identify an author's major assumption. Success in Critical Reasoning hinges on developing a systematic approach to analyzing the logic of arguments.

Here is an example. There is an argument, and several choices following.
Advertisement: Quicktrak is gaining more subscribers each year than any other business news service. Quicktrak offers the most up-to-date international business news, and the most comprehensive company information needed to make wise investment decisions. Quicktrak is the only service devoted exclusively to international business news and the financial analysis of corporations. So, by choosing a financial news service other than Quicktrak, you are doing your company a disservice.

Which of the following is an assumption of the argument in the advertisement above?

1. A subscription to Quicktrak is not appreciably more expensive than a subscription to standard business magazines or newspapers.

2. A significant portion of any company's business involves international trade or investing in other companies.

3. Quicktrak has more subscribers than other business news services.

4. The market share of Quicktrak is increasing.

5. Choosing a financial news service other than Quicktrak is worse than choosing no financial news service at all.

Everything in the advertisment points to the final sentence, which says, "So, by choosing a financial news service other than Quicktrak, you are doing your company a disservice." So you can say that each point made leading up to this argument is one more statement in support of the purpose of the argument. Number 5 is the only one that speaks directly to the argument.

Answer 2

It depends somewhat on the subject matter but in general think about the term "critical reasoning." It means to criticize something in an intelligent way. Often we think of criticism as something bad but criticism can be constructive if it is meant to improve a situation or to find a better answer or to meet some kind of need.

For example, an efficiency expert can be brought to a company to observe how the employees work, think about how they could do better, and to turn in a written evaluation perhaps with suggestions for improvement.

Most people don't like to be evaluated but a constructive criticism may help them to be more useful and productive in their work.