Source: “The Thinker,” Ed Mendez, Flickr
Think of times you’ve made an important decision, such as whether to take a part-time job, buy a car, or select a gift for someone special. You might have started with your claim (thesis): “I must buy a car because _____ (list of all the reasons).” You used deduction. Or you might have reversed the order: “(List of all the reasons); therefore, I must buy a car.” Here, you used induction. You planned your argument based upon what you knew about your audience. All writers of valid, acceptable arguments develop them based upon the audience they want to influence.
Review the following examples. Find the claim (thesis) in each sentence and click on it. If you choose correctly, the claim will highlight.
Read each sentence again and decide if it is an example of deductive or inductive reasoning.