Critical reasoning: strengthen, weaken, and evaluate

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Determine which new piece of information most strengthens an argument by adding support to the conclusion or protecting a necessary assumption.
Determine which new piece of information most weakens an argument by undermining evidence, attacking an assumption, or introducing a credible alternative explanation.
Evaluate an argument by identifying the specific question whose answer would most affect the argument’s validity or persuasiveness.

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Assess the direction and magnitude of an answer choice’s impact on the argument rather than selecting a choice that is merely related to the topic.

Eliminate answer choices that are irrelevant, too weak, opposite in effect, or dependent on unsupported assumptions beyond the stimulus.

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