The Art of Deception in Politics series discussed elite theory, principle agent theory and the psychology of persuasion, but none of these articles told you how to truly identify holes in logic. This time I won’t beat a dead horse discussing the many more various tools and techniques politicians use to deceive the public. However, I will tell you how to guard against it in the political world and your every day life.

Many of false the claims, deceptive comments or arguments for or against a candidate fall under the category of a logical fallacy. Randy Marcoz summarized this subject in his Intelligent Communication blog post, “Using the Campaign Season to Practice Communication Skills.”

You’ll notice that many of your peers comments and “logical” arguments or conclusions also fall victim to these common fallacies. You may even find yourself using logical fallacies on occasion.

First Thing’s First. What is a Logical Fallacy?

A logical fallacy is an error in reasoning. There are many common errors that individuals make on a daily basis without even realizing it. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, “Fallacies can be either illegitimate arguments or irrelevant points, and are often identified because they lack evidence that supports their claim.”

Essentially, there are a lot of logical fallacies. Learning what they are and how they are used is the only way to ensure you don’t use fallacies in your day to day life. It is also the only way you will not fall victim to other’s fallacies as you dive into conversations, negotiations, etc.

“The inability to think critically makes us vulnerable to manipulation by those skilled in the art of rhetoric.” – LogicalFallacies.info

A List of Common Fallacies

Thanks to Intelligent Communication, we have a downloadable fallacy scorecard available. But I will outline the essentials here for you. If you like what you see, I would encourage you to download the scorecard and memorize it. It could save you from making terrible choices or losing an argument.

1. Ad Hominem: One of the most common fallacies. This attacks a person’s character rather than one’s opinions or arguments.
2. Ad Populum: An appeal using social proof as the basis for an argument. “The majority of people believe it, so you should too.”
3. Appeal to Emotion: Appeals to your emotions rather than facts, exploiting the inability to think critically when emotions are involved.
4. Circular Argument: Restates an argument over and over again as if it can be both the cause and effect. The reasoning for a fact or opinion is that fact or opinion itself.
5. Either/or: The oversimplification of a situation by reducing it to only two options.
6. Genetic Fallacy: An argument or conclusion drawn based on the origins of a person, organization or idea.
7. Hasty Generalization: Also a very common fallacy, drawing conclusions based on insufficient evidence or bias.
8. Moral Equivalence: Comparing a minor issue with a major atrocity or vice versa.
9. Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc: States that if X happened after Y, then Y clearly caused X. It fails to take other evidence and factors into consideration.
10. Red Herring: Avoiding an argument by using a distraction or changing the subject.
11. Slippery Slope: Says that if we allow A to happen, then B, C, D, etc. will also happen. This then will lead to Z, which is awful. Think of the domino effect.
12. Straw Man: Attacking not what the other person is actually saying, but an over simplified version of the other’s argument.
13. Begging the Claim: The claim itself is validated by the claim. (i.e. “The immoral act of hunting should be banned.”)

Logic Prevails

There are many more fallacies out there. In fact, there are too many to list here. The point is that you should be aware of holes in logic, irrelevant arguments and illegitimate points. You will find yourself as well as others making these kinds of claims more often than not. The first step in guarding against logical fallacies is to identify them.

What other fallacies have you come across? Let us know in the comments below.