Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sufficient vs Necessary Assumption

LSATtruth.LSATtruth. Alum Member
I was just wondering based upon the question stem, how can you tell if they want to to find the sufficient vs. the necessary assumption and vice versa.

Comments

  • Rachel YoonRachel Yoon Member
    173 karma
    When they say 'if assumed', you can take it as a sufficient assumption.
    ex) The conclusion drawn above follows logically 'if' which one of the following is 'assumed'?
    For the necessary assumption, the question includes 'requires assuming', 'relies on assumption', 'depends on assuming', etc.
    ex) Which one of the following is an 'assumption' on which the argument 'depends'?


    I think you can find more thorough steps on J.Y's explanation :)
  • awyeah26awyeah26 Alum Member
    75 karma
    I think Rachel hit it on the head, but I'll add this as well. You should commit to memory Group I and Group 2 logical indicators, which are discussed in the curriculum. These logical indicators will help you identify whether they're asking you for the sufficient (Group I) or the necessary (Group 2) assumption.
  • AlexAlex Alum Member
    23929 karma
    @TheWord26 said:
    I think Rachel hit it on the head, but I'll add this as well. You should commit to memory Group I and Group 2 logical indicators, which are discussed in the curriculum. These logical indicators will help you identify whether they're asking you for the sufficient (Group I) or the necessary (Group 2) assumption.
    Couldn't have said it better myself :)
  • MrSamIamMrSamIam Inactive ⭐
    2086 karma
    Piggybacking off of what @"Rachel Yoon" said:
    Typically, when the question stem is worded in a way that sounds like they are telling you that the assumption is already in the stimulus, they're asking you for a necessary assumption. When worded in a way that sounds like they want you to make the assumption, they're asking for a sufficient assumptions.
    That might sound confusing, so it's best to just go through as many NA/SA questions as possible and see how the question stems are worded.
    Also, "follows logically" is a clear indicator of a SA question - NAs don't guarantee that the conclusion will follow logically.
Sign In or Register to comment.