• What are deductive and inductive arguments?
• How to differentiate deductive and inductive arguments?
• Examples of deductive arguments
• Examples of inductive arguments
• Importance of deductive and inductive arguments

We explain what deductive and inductive arguments are, how to differentiate them, their importance and examples of each one.

Concluding that the Earth is round because all planets are is a deductive argument.

What are deductive and inductive arguments?

Deductive arguments and inductive arguments are two opposing logical reasoning methods, which consist of going from the general to the particular, and vice versa, to obtain conclusions. All the arguments start from establishing a logical connection between their premises and its conclusions and usually occur according to these two ways of reasoning:

• The deductive arguments. They reach a conclusion through the premises, following a series of logical steps. They are conclusive arguments that seek to affirm a truth in all possible cases. In this type of reasoning, the information of the conclusion is already contained in the premises, for example:
  Premise: The Day of the Dead is a holiday in my country.
  Premise: Today is the Day of the Dead.
  Conclusion: Today is a holiday in my country.

• Inductive arguments. They come to conclusions from the observation of certain repeating patterns. They cannot guarantee their certainty, so they are inconclusive arguments. These arguments allow us to assume probable conclusions, but they do not provide certainty that they are fulfilled in all cases. For example:
  Premise: The hardware store closes at 7:00 p.m.
  Premise: The clothing store closes at 7:00 p.m.
  Conclusion: Probably, all the stores on this block close at 7:00 p.m.

Both types of reasoning are important and can yield valuable results, although in the case of deductive these results will or will not be valid depending on the validity of the premises and the correct deductive logic. In contrast, the results of inductive reasoning cannot be measured in terms of validity or invalidity, since they only state the probability of certain conclusions.

How to differentiate deductive and inductive arguments?

Deductive and inductive arguments are distinguished from each other according to their internal logic and the language used to formulate them. Their main differences are:

Deductive arguments	Inductive arguments
They stand on logical bases, step by step.	They lack a logical basis, they are sustained by intuition and generalization.
They start from general premises and arrive at a specific conclusion.	They start from specific premises to formulate a general conclusion.
They aspire to be conclusive.	They aim for a certain probability.
The relationship between its premises and its conclusions is absolute.	The relationship between its premises and its conclusions is one of probability.
The conclusions do not depend on any data that is not in the premises.	The conclusions depend on elements outside the reasoning.

Examples of deductive arguments

1. Premise: Planets are round.
   Premise: The Earth it is a planet.
   Conclusion: The Earth is round.
2. Premise: Students who have missed the exam must take the make-up.
   Premise: Alfonsina has missed the exam.
   Conclusion: Alfonsina must render the recovery.
3. Premise: Citrus fruits are a great source of vitamin C.
   Premise: Lemon is a citrus fruit.
   Bottom Line: Lemon is a great source of vitamin C.
4. Premise: On Sundays in February the basketball zone championship games are played.
   Premise: Today is Sunday, February 13.
   Conclusion: Today will be played a game of the zonal championship of basketball.
5. Premise: The winners of the contest must go on stage.
   Premise: Marcelo won the first prize in the contest.
   Conclusion: Marcelo must go on stage.
6. Premise: The candidate must obtain more than 50% of the votes to be elected president.
   Premise: The Young Front candidate obtained 23% of the votes.
   Conclusion: The Young Front candidate was not elected president.
7. Premise: Jorge's children are my cousins.
   Premise: Juan is Jorge's son.
   Conclusion: Juan is my cousin.
8. Premise: On holidays the hairdresser will be closed.
   Premise: Today is a holiday.
   Conclusion: The salon is closed.
9. Premise: The square root of prime numbers is an irrational number.
   Premise: 7 is a prime number.
   Conclusion: The square root of 7 is an irrational number.
10. Premise: All the school teachers attended the pedagogical day this morning.
    Premise: Juliette is a teacher at the school.
    Conclusion: Juliette attended the pedagogical day this morning.
11. Premise: mammals they reproduce sexually.
    Premise: The lion is a mammal.
    Conclusion: The lion reproduces sexually.
12. Premise: The Water boils at 100 ° C.
    Premise: The water in the kettle is boiling.
    Conclusion: The water in the kettle is at 100 ° C.
13. Premise: The band will give concerts this year in all the provinces of Argentina.
    Premise: Neuquén is an Argentine province.
    Conclusion: The band will give a concert in Neuquén this year.
14. Premise: All of Zulema's daughters have brown eyes.
    Premise: Nuria is the daughter of Zulema.
    Conclusion: Nuria has brown eyes.
15. Premise: Only those who have a driver's license may drive a vehicle on public roads.
    Premise: Patricia does not have a driver's license.
    Conclusion: Patricia will not be able to drive a vehicle on public roads.

Examples of inductive arguments

1. Premise: Yesterday it rained in the City of Buenos Aires.
   Premise: Today it is raining in the City of Buenos Aires.
   Premise: Tomorrow rain is announced in the City of Buenos Aires.
   Conclusion: In the City of Buenos Aires it rains a lot during the spring.
2. Premise: The food at this Mexican restaurant is delicious.
   Premise: The food at this Peruvian restaurant is delicious.
   Premise: The food at this Venezuelan restaurant is delicious.
   Conclusion: Latin American food is delicious.
3. Premise: The teacher of computing He wears a blue apron.
   Premise: The teacher of literature He wears a blue apron.
   Conclusion: All the teachers at this institution wear a blue apron.
4. Premise: My brother has a German Shepherd who shed a lot of hair.
   Premise: My grandmother has a German Shepherd who loses a lot of hair.
   Conclusion: German Shepherd dogs lose a lot of hair.
5. Premise: In my neighborhood school they raise the flag every morning.
   Premise: At the corner school they raise the flag every morning.
   Conclusion: In schools they raise the flag every morning.
6. Premise: I found a typo in this book.
   Premise: I found another typo in this book.
   Conclusion: This book has a lot of typos.
7. Premise: The water in the Plage de Maui is crystal clear.
   Premise: The water at Matira Beach is crystal clear.
   Conclusion: All the beaches in French Polynesia have crystal clear water.
8. Premise: The sportswear store has discounts on their products.
   Premise: The men's clothing store has discounts on their products.
   Premise: The children's clothing store has discounts on its products.
   Conclusion: There are many discounts at the stores on this block.
9. Premise: The cactus on my balcony is in bloom.
   Premise: The neighbor's cactus is in bloom.
   Conclusion: Cacti flourish at this time.
10. Premise: There was a lot of traffic on the highway on Friday.
    Premise: Today is Friday and there is a lot of traffic on the highway.
    Conclusion: On Fridays there is usually a lot of traffic on the highway.
11. Premise: Sonia's mobile phone was stolen on Domano Street.
    Premise: Pastor's mobile phone was stolen on Domano Street.
    Conclusion: There are many robberies on Domano Street.
12. Premise: They suspended the flight to Lima this morning.
    Premise: They suspended the flight to Lima this afternoon.
    Conclusion: My flight to Lima for tonight is likely to be suspended.
13. Premise: My nephew received communion at the age of ten.
    Premise: Your son received communion at the age of ten.
    Conclusion: Children usually receive communion at the age of ten.
14. Premise: Rafael Nadal won the Roland Garros in 2017.
    Premise: Rafael Nadal won the Roland Garros in 2018.
    Premise: Rafael Nadal won the Roland Garros in 2019.
    Conclusion: Rafael Nadal is the favorite to win the 2020 Roland Garros.
15. Premise: My cat meows.
    Premise: My cousin's cat meows.
    Conclusion: All cats meow.

Importance of deductive and inductive arguments

Both deductive and inductive arguments are ways that humans use to reach conclusions and try to understand the world around them. These two types of reasoning are used constantly in the day to day to explain or learn new information.

• The deductive arguments. They are important when drawing conclusions based on the information that you have. That is why they are considered explanatory, because they do not generate new information, but rather verify the existing one. If the premises are correct, the deductive argument will always allow a correct conclusion to be reached.
• Inductive arguments. They are used to make generalizations based on certain premises. This type of reasoning is important because it allows information to be obtained from something that is observed. Keep in mind that inductive arguments are based on the probabilityTherefore, they cannot always be verified, and their conclusions are taken for granted, not for certain.