Deductive reasoning is the process of drawing a conclusion based on premises that are generally assumed to be true.
Also called "deductive logic," this act uses a logical premise to reach a logical conclusion. Deductive reasoning is often referred to as "top-down reasoning. We know this because we were already provided with the information we assume to be true—the trunk is large.
Based on our deductive reasoning skills, we know if a bike does not fit in an already large trunk, then it must also be large. So long as the two premises are based on accurate information, the outcome of this type of conclusion is often true. One of the most common types of deductive reasoning is a syllogism. Syllogism refers to two statements—a major and a minor statement—join to form a logical conclusion.
The two accurate statements mean that the statement will likely be true for all additional premises of that category. This generally occurs when one of the first assumptive statements is false.
It is also possible to come to an accurate conclusion even if one or both of the generalized premises are false. Inductive vs. Deductive reasoning is the act of backing up a generalized statement with specific scenarios. Here are several examples to help you better understand deductive reasoning:. Each of these statements includes two accurate pieces of information and an assumption based on the first two pieces of information.
So long as the first two pieces of information are correct, the assumption should also be accurate. Understanding the process of deductive reasoning can help you apply logic to solve challenges in your work. Deductive thought uses only information assumed to be accurate. The process of deductive reasoning includes the following steps:. There are many ways you can use deductive reasoning to make decisions in your professional life. Here are a few ways you can use this process to draw conclusions throughout your career:.
Learning to apply existing deductive reasoning skills during the decision-making process will help you make better-informed choices in the workplace. You may use deductive reasoning when finding and acquiring a job, hiring employees, managing employees, working with customers and making a variety of business or career decisions.
Deductive reasoning in the workplace requires the following skills:. Many roles require you to use problem-solving skills to overcome challenges and discover reliable resolutions.
You can apply the deductive reasoning process to your problem-solving efforts by first identifying an accurate assumption you can use as a foundation for your solution. Deductive reasoning often leads to fewer errors because it reduces guesswork. From there, we use logic to infer causes. Debate about reasoning remained much the same until the time of Isaac Newton.
In his Principia, Newton outlined four rules for reasoning in the scientific method :. In , philosopher John Stuart Mill published A System of Logic , which further refined our understanding of reasoning. Mill believed that science should be based on a search for regularities among events. If a regularity is consistent, it can be considered a law. Mill described five methods for identifying causes by noting regularities. These methods are still used today:.
Karl Popper was the next theorist to make a serious contribution to the study of reasoning. Popper is well known for his focus on disconfirming evidence and disproving hypotheses. Beginning with a hypothesis, we use deductive reasoning to make predictions. A hypothesis will be based on a theory — a set of independent and dependent statements. If the predictions are true, the theory is true, and vice versa.
This process requires vigorous testing to identify any anomalies, and Popper does not accept theories that cannot be physically tested. Any phenomenon not present in tests cannot be the foundation of a theory, according to Popper. The phenomenon must also be consistent and reproducible.
Science is always changing as more hypotheses are modified or disproved and we inch closer to the truth. No discussion of logic is complete without a refresher course in the difference between inductive and deductive reasoning.
By its strictest definition, inductive reasoning proves a general principle—your idea worth spreading—by highlighting a group of specific events, trends, or observations. In contrast, deductive reasoning builds up to a specific principle—again, your idea worth spreading—through a chain of increasingly narrow statements. Logic is an incredibly important skill, and because we use it so often in everyday life, we benefit by clarifying the methods we use to draw conclusions.
Knowing what makes an argument sound is valuable for making decisions and understanding how the world works. It helps us to spot people who are deliberately misleading us through unsound arguments. Understanding reasoning is also helpful for avoiding fallacies and for negotiating.
Read Next. Mental Models Reading Time: 12 minutes. As my friend Peter Kaufman says : What are the three largest, most relevant sample sizes for identifying universal principles? Deductive and inductive reasoning are both based on evidence.
Several types of evidence are used in reasoning to point to a truth: Direct or experimental evidence — This relies on observations and experiments, which should be repeatable with consistent results.
Anecdotal or circumstantial evidence — Overreliance on anecdotal evidence can be a logical fallacy because it is based on the assumption that two coexisting factors are linked even though alternative explanations have not been explored.
The main use of anecdotal evidence is for forming hypotheses which can then be tested with experimental evidence. Argumentative evidence — We sometimes draw conclusions based on facts. However, this evidence is unreliable when the facts are not directly testing a hypothesis.
For example, seeing a light in the sky and concluding that it is an alien aircraft would be argumentative evidence. Testimonial evidence — When an individual presents an opinion, it is testimonial evidence. Once again, this is unreliable, as people may be biased and there may not be any direct evidence to support their testimony. There are several key types of inductive reasoning: Generalized — Draws a conclusion from a generalization. If the generalization is wrong, the conclusion may be logical, but it may also be untrue.
For example, the argument, "All bald men are grandfathers. Harold is bald. Therefore, Harold is a grandfather," is valid logically but it is untrue because the original statement is false. Inductive reasoning is the opposite of deductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning makes broad generalizations from specific observations.
Basically, there is data, then conclusions are drawn from the data. This is called inductive logic, according to Utah State University. We make many observations, discern a pattern, make a generalization, and infer an explanation or a theory," Wassertheil-Smoller told Live Science. An example of inductive logic is, "The coin I pulled from the bag is a penny. That coin is a penny. A third coin from the bag is a penny. This type of reasoning is commonly used in the workplace, where employees are guided by their knowledge of the company, industry and relevant trends and use that information to make decisions and solve problems.
For example, a company that sells nail polish assumes that professional women are overloaded with family and work responsibilities and are often short on time. From this, they deduce that they would be successful in marketing a nail polish product that can be applied like a sticker and dries in a fraction of the time compared to their competitors.
Here are several situations where you might be required to use deductive reasoning skills in the workplace. Employees can use deductive reasoning to come up with logical solutions to problems that are impacting an organization. To do this, you will first need to ask questions to form the premise of your argument, the statement that you are holding as truth.
Example: You realized your furniture company is spending a lot of money each month buying fuel for your delivery truck and you want to change your budget to reflect a more appropriate amount for fuel costs. It covers an average of miles each month on average. For example, you will need to find out if the client was dissatisfied with a product or service and why.
You will also need to find out what you can do to rectify the situation. Using this information, you can form two premises: that the client is unhappy and that their unhappiness is the result of poor communication. From this, you can deduce that regular communication will keep the client happy. Having formed this deduction, you then can instruct your team to start sending weekly status reports to the client and feel confident that the problem will be resolved.
You can use deductive reasoning to resolve conflicts between employees as well. Example: You have noticed that for the last month, two team members have forgotten to send status reports to a client.
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