IMAT Logical Reasoning · Critical Thinking
Drawing a Conclusion That Follows
A conclusion follows from a passage when the passage alone supports it, at exactly the strength the passage allows.
Why this matters
Which statement can be drawn as a conclusion is the most common question in the chapter, asked 27 times from 2011 to 2023, and it is one of the two ministry questions (2023). The right option is usually modest; the wrong ones go one step beyond the passage.
Concept 1 of 2: Quantifiers and the strength of a claim: all, most, some, may
Many wrong options state the right idea with one word too strong: 'most' becomes 'all', 'may' becomes 'will', 'is linked to' becomes 'causes'. Before judging what a claim says, judge how much it says. A claim that is stronger than its evidence does not follow, even when it points the right way.
Definition
Read the size of every claim:
- All, every, none, always, never: no exceptions. One counter-case is enough to break them.
- Most: more than half. If most of a group are A and most are B, then some are both.
- Some: at least one. 'Some are' does not tell you that some are not.
- May, can, could: a possibility, not a certainty. 'Will' and 'must' are much stronger.
- The opposite of 'all A are B' is 'some A are not B', not 'no A are B'.
- From 'most A are B' you cannot conclude anything certain about one particular A.
- With percentages: if a% of a group are A and b% are B, at least percent are both (when that is positive).
Worked example
In a survey of a chess club, 70% of members said they also play an online strategy game, and 60% said they read books about chess. Which of these must be true? (1) Some members do both. (2) Most members who play online also read chess books. (3) At least 30% of all members do both.
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
'Some' does not mean 'not all'
In logic, 'some birds can fly' is true even though all of them might. An option that turns 'some A are B' into 'some A are not B' adds information the passage never gave.
Concept 2 of 2: Drawing a conclusion that follows from a passage
Here the passage gives facts and stops before stating a conclusion. The right option is the one the passage supports without adding anything, and it is often modest and a little dull. The wrong options go further than the evidence, change the subject, or rely on things you happen to know.
Definition
A conclusion follows if the passage alone gives enough support for it.
- Step 1: sum up in one sentence what the passage shows.
- Step 2: for each option ask: does the passage state or clearly imply this?
- Reject options that go beyond the passage (all, always, will, must), change the topic (another group, another time, a moral judgement the passage never makes), reverse the finding, or need outside knowledge, even true outside knowledge.
- The right answer often joins two facts from different sentences.
- 'Best supported' still means supported by the passage, not by common sense.
Worked example
Researchers put potted plants in twenty offices and left twenty similar offices without plants. Over three months they measured the air and asked the staff how they felt. One common indoor pollutant was slightly lower in the offices with plants, but the difference was far too small to affect health. Yet staff in the offices with plants said they felt calmer and rated their workplace as more pleasant. Which conclusion follows: (a) plants are an effective way to clean office air; (b) every office worker would be happier with plants; (c) offices should be required to have plants; (d) the benefit staff felt from the plants was probably not due to cleaner air; (e) plants have no effect on indoor air?
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
A true statement is not the same as a conclusion
IMAT often includes an option that is a well-known fact. If the passage does not give you that fact, it cannot be drawn as a conclusion from the passage, however true it is.
The dull option is often the right one
Options with 'always', 'proves', 'all' or 'should' sound decisive and attract students in a hurry. Passages rarely support them. The modest option ('can', 'may', 'is not guaranteed') is usually the one that follows.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Watch out for (3)
- 'Some' does not mean 'not all'→ Quantifiers and the strength of a claim: all, most, some, may
- A true statement is not the same as a conclusion→ Drawing a conclusion that follows from a passage
- The dull option is often the right one→ Drawing a conclusion that follows from a passage
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