Weaken

(Weak)

Stems that ask us to provide an additional piece of information that, if true, would weaken the argument in the stimulus.

Avg. 2.25 per section

“Which of the following, if true, most weakens the argument?”

10%
20%
33%
20%
17%

Avg. difficulty: 3.1

Correct answer criteria

  • Something that, if true, would make the conclusion less likely to follow from the premises.

Key tactics

  • Identify the conclusion and the premises
  • Think about why the conclusion doesn't have to be true even if the premises are true
  • Pay attention to new concepts brought up on the conclusion but not mentioned in the stimulus. The argument has to make some kind of assumption about those new ideas
  • Be ready for arguments where the author tries to provide a hypothesis (causal explanation) for some phenomenon. If you see this structure, think about alternate hypotheses
  • Be open-minded. It's hard to predict exactly what the correct answer will involve

Answer choice tips

  • The correct answer doesn't need to falsify the conclusion - even if it just makes the conclusion slightly less likely to follow from the premises, it can still be correct. If multiple answers appear to weaken, choose the answer that most weakens (the answer that requires the fewest, and most reasonable assumptions)
  • If the argument involves correlation to cause or explanations for a phenomenon, be ready for a correct answer that is about providing an alternate explanation. This isn't always the correct answer, but it's common on this kind of argument

Looking for more?

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Logical reasoning question types

Argument part Evaluate Fill in the blank Flaw or descriptive weakening Inference Main conclusion or main point Method of reasoning or descriptive Most strongly supported Must be false Must be true Necessary assumption Parallel flawed method of reasoning Parallel method of reasoning Point at issue: agree Point at issue: disagree Principle PSA - find or complete the application PSA - find the rule Resolve reconcile or explain Strengthen Sufficient assumption Weaken

Reading comprehension question types

Analogy (RC) Application Author’s attitude Author’s perspective Describe approach Describe organization Describe relationship Implied Logical continuation Main point Meaning in context (of word, phrase, or idea) Other’s perspective Principle or generalization Purpose in context (of word, phrase, or idea) Purpose of paragraph Purpose of passage Stated Structure WSE (RC)

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