Political Science Chapters 4-6

Front 1

Knowledge

Back 1

Information which we believe to be true & for which we have justification or evidence

Front 2

Rationalist

Back 2

One who claims that most human knowledge comes through reason

Front 3

Empiricist

Back 3

One who believes that we discover truth primarily through our physical senses

Front 4

False memory syndrome

Back 4

The recalling of events that never happened

Front 5

Hearsay

Back 5

Evidence that heard by one person and then repeated to another

Front 6

Anecdotal evidence

Back 6

Evidence based on personal testimonies

Front 7

In seeking out experts we should look at their credentials including:

Back 7

1) education or training from a reputable institute

2) experience in making judgments in the field

3) reputation among peers as an expert in the field

4) accomplishments in the field such as academic papers and awards

Front 8

Confirmation bias

Back 8

Tendency to look only for evidence that supports our assumptions

Front 9

Memorable-event error

Back 9

A cognitive error that involves our ability to vividly remember outstanding events

Front 10

Probability error

Back 10

Misunderstanding the probability or chances of an event by a huge margin

Front 11

Gamblers error

Back 11

The belief that a previous event affects the probability in a random event

Front 12

Self-serving biases or errors

Back 12

- the misperception that we are in control

- the tendency to overestimate ourselves in comparison to others

- the tendency to exaggerate our strengths and minimize our weaknesses

Front 13

Diffusion of responsibility

Back 13

The tendency when in a large group to regard a problem as belonging to someone else

Front 14

Fallacy

Back 14

A faulty argument that at first appears to be correct

Front 15

Formal fallacy

Back 15

A type of mistaken reasoning in which the form of an argument itself is invalid

Front 16

Informal fallacy

Back 16

A type of mistaken reasoning that occurs when an argument is psychologically or emotionally persuasive but logically incorrect

Front 17

Fallacy of ambiguity

Back 17

Arguments that have ambiguous phrases or sloppy grammatical structure

Front 18

Equivocation

Back 18

A key term in an argument changes meaning during the course of the argument

Front 19

Accent

Back 19

The meaning of an argument changes depending on which words or phrase in it is emphasized

Front 20

Fallacy of division

Back 20

A erroneous inference from characteristics of an entire set or group about a member of that group or set

Front 21

Amphiboly

Back 21

An argument contains a grammatical mistake, that allows more than one conclusion to be drawn

Front 22

Fallacy of composition

Back 22

An erroneous inference from the characteristics of a member of a group or set about the characteristics o the entire group or set

Front 23

Fallacy or relevance

Back 23

The premise is logically irrelevant or unrelated to the conclusion

Front 24

Ad hominem fallacy

Back 24

Instead of presenting a counterargument we attack the character of the person who make the argument

Front 25

Appeal to force (scare tactics)

Back 25

The use or threat of force in an attempt to get another person to accept a conclusion as correct

Front 26

Appeal to pity

Back 26

Pity is evokes in an argument when pity is irrelevant to the conclusion

Front 27

Popular appeal

Back 27

An appeal to popular opinion to gain support for our conclusion

Front 28

Appeal to ignorance

Back 28

The claim that something is true simply because no one has proven it false or that something is false because no one has proven it true

Front 29

Hasty generalization

Back 29

A generalization is made from a sample that is too small or biased

Front 30

Straw man fallacy

Back 30

An opponent's argument is distorted or misrepresented in order to make it easier to refute

Front 31

Red herring fallacy

Back 31

A response is directed towards a conclusion that is different from that proposed by the original argument

Front 32

Unwarranted assumption

Back 32

A fallacious argument that contains an assumption that is not supported by evidence

Front 33

Begging the question

Back 33

The conclusion of an argument is simply a rewording of a premise

Front 34

Inappropriate appeal to authority

Back 34

We look to an authority in a field other than than under investigation

Front 35

Loaded question

Back 35

A particular answer is presumed to an unasked question

Front 36

False dilemma

Back 36

Response to complex issues are reduced to an either/ or choice

Front 37

Questionable cause (post hoc)

Back 37

A person assumes without sufficient evidence that one thing is the cause of another

Front 38

Slippery slope

Back 38

The faulty assumption that if certain actions of this type will soon be permissible

Front 39

Naturalistic fallacy

Back 39

A fallacy based on the assumption that what is natural is good

Front 40

Issue

Back 40

An ill-defined complex of problems involving a controversy or uncertainty

Front 41

Rhetoric

Back 41

The defense of a particular position usually without adequate consideration of opposing evidence in order to win people over to one's position

Front 42

Argument

Back 42

Reasoning that is made up of two or more propositions

Front 43

Deductive argument

Back 43

An argument that claims its conclusion necessary follows from the premises

Front 44

Inductive argument

Back 44

An argument that only claims that its conclusion probably follows from the premise

Front 45

Proposition

Back 45

A statement that expresses a complete thought and can be either true or false

Front 46

Conclusion

Back 46

The proposition in an argument that is supported on the basis of other propositions

Front 47

Premise

Back 47

A proposition in an argument that supports the conclusion

Front 48

Descriptive premise

Back 48

A premise that is based on empirical facts

Front 49

Empirical fact

Back 49

A fact based on scientific observation and the evidence of our five senses

Front 50

Prescriptive premise

Back 50

A premise in an argument containing a value statement

Front 51

Analogical premise

Back 51

A premise containing an analogy or comparison between similar events or things

Front 52

Definitional premise

Back 52

A premise containing the definition of a key term

Front 53

Explanation

Back 53

A statement about why or how something is the case

Front 54

Conditional statement

Back 54

An "If....then...." Statement