The Difference Between Inductive And Deductive Reasoning. How Are Essay

The Difference Between Inductive And Deductive Reasoning. How Are Issues Of Validity And Truth Distinguished - Essay Example The inductive reasoning is intuitive and majorly a result of guesswork. For this reason, inductive reasoning is said to be probabilistic (Hacking, 2001, p.38). The conclusions obtained from the specific examples are analysed to form a general proposition that is a probabilistic one. The general rule that is formed as a result of inductive is subject to test and the outcome of those tests could not be guaranteed. The concept of inductive reasoning was developed by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Hume stated that the daily habits of human beings are the reflection of the uncertain conclusions that are derived from the limited experiences (Dewey, 2008, p.47). Thus the general principles developed are not tested and derived but are the outcome of specific events in life. This is where inductive reasoning is significant. There is no scope of drawing logical conclusions that could be guaranteed through inductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning could be termed as bottom-up reasoning. .. . Deductive reasoning links the premises to the derived conclusions. The conclusions drawn from the general principles through deductive reasoning could be validated by specific examples. The conclusions derived from the general propositions are true for any individual event that is an application of the general rule (Descartes, 2006, p.26). The laws of syllogism provide one form of logical reasoning that helps in the logical deduction of conclusions from the general statements or propositions. The general statements being given, a hypothesis is designed which is tested in order to reach a logical conclusion. There are two other laws, namely the law of detachment and the law of contra-positive that are used in the process of deductive reasoning. Deductive reasoning could be explained with the help of the following example. The general propositions considered in this case are: All tables are chairs and some tables are fans. From the given two statements, it could be deduced logically th at some chairs are fans. This conclusion has been deducted with the help of the given two statements and applying the laws of syllogism. Thus a specific instance has been drawn though deductive reasoning from the two general statements (Bacon, 2009, p.67). Distinction between validity and truth The process of deductive reasoning considers the general propositions and designs a hypothesis in order to logically deduce a conclusion. The conclusion drawn from the general statements are valid logically and are considered to be true. The premises or the general propositions are considered to be true for the purpose of logical deduction. The hypothesis is for the purpose for the logical deduction of the