Method of Reasoning Questions
Do not judge the argument. Describe its move.
Two tools pair with this method. The miss-pattern analyzer shows which question types cost you the most points, and the blind review worksheet gives you a second pass at every miss.
What the question asks
The question asks how the argument reaches its conclusion. The stem says something like "The argument proceeds by..." or "The method of reasoning used is..."
You are describing the technique, not judging whether it works. A flawed argument and a sound one can use the same method. Stay neutral.
Step-by-step method
- Find the conclusion. You cannot name the move until you know where it lands. Pin down the claim first.
- Ask what the author does. What move carries the author from evidence to conclusion? Look for the technique, not the topic.
- Learn the common moves. The usual suspects: drawing an analogy, giving a counterexample, ruling out alternatives, generalizing from examples, applying a general principle to a case.
- Describe it in plain words first. Say the move to yourself simply: "It compares two situations." Then find the choice that says the same thing formally.
- Match the description, not the topic. The right choice describes the structure. A choice that mentions the argument’s subject matter is usually a trap.
Worked examples
Both examples are original. They are not real LSAT questions.
Example 1
Just as a coach benches a player who ignores the playbook, a manager should dismiss an employee who ignores company policy.
The argument proceeds by...
The answer: drawing an analogy between two situations.
Why: The argument compares a team to a company and a player to an employee, then transfers the judgment across. The method is the comparison itself.
Example 2
It is not true that every protest turns violent. Last month’s march downtown was entirely peaceful.
The method of reasoning used in the argument is to...
The answer: refute a general claim with a counterexample.
Why: One peaceful march is enough to break the claim that every protest turns violent. The method is the single counterexample doing all the work.
Describe the move before you look at the choices
Method questions punish students who match topics. Two arguments about medicine can use completely different moves, and two arguments about nothing alike can use the same one. Before reading the choices, describe what the argument did in plain words: "It gave an analogy, then said the analogy breaks down." That plain sentence is your answer key.
Learn the small vocabulary of moves the test reuses. Arguments attack analogies. They draw distinctions between similar cases. They appeal to a general principle, reject a proposed explanation in favor of another, or show that a claim leads to an absurd result. Most method questions are one of these five in different clothes. When you can name the move, the formal answer choice is just the same name in fancier words.
Keep description and judgment separate. The stem asks what the argument does, not whether it does it well. Choices with words like "fails to consider" or "overlooks" are judgments. They belong on flaw questions. On a method question, the right answer is neutral: it describes the machinery without grading it.
Common traps
- A choice naming a technique the argument does not use. Check the actual move, not a familiar label.
- A choice describing the conclusion instead of the method. "It concludes that..." answers a different question.
- A choice judging the argument, like "fails to consider." The stem asks for a neutral description.
- A choice about the topic. The subject matter is never the method.
Practice the method
The free diagnostic scores every LR question type and shows exactly where you are losing points.