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Printable Critical Thinking Cards

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 PAGE 2

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

strawman false cause appeal to the fallacy fallacy

emotion
Misrepresenting someone’s Presuming that a real or Presuming that because a claim
argument to make it perceived relationship between Manipulating an emotional has been poorly argued, or a
easier to attack. things means that one is the response in place of a valid or fallacy has been made, that it is
After Bob said that we should be nice cause of the other. compelling argument. necessarily wrong.
to kittens, Will says Bob wants to be Pointing to a fancy chart, Roger shows Luke didn’t want to eat his sheep brains Recognising that Amanda had
mean to puppies! how temperatures have been rising over with chopped liver and brussels sprouts, committed a fallacy in arguing that
Everyone boos Bob who is clearly the past few centuries, whilst at the same but his father told him to think about the we should eat healthy food because a
a mean jerk for wanting to hurt time the numbers of pirates have been poor, starving children in a third world nutritionist said it was popular, Alyse said
poor, cute puppies. decreasing; thus pirates cool the world country who weren’t fortunate enough we should therefore eat bacon double
and global warming is a hoax. to have any food at all. cheeseburgers every day.

yourfallacy.is/strawman yourfallacy.is/false-cause yourfallacy.is/appeal-to-emotion yourfallacy.is/the-fallacy-fallacy

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

slippery slope ad hominem tu quoque personal

incredulity
Asserting that if we allow Attacking your opponent’s Avoiding having to engage
A to happen, then Z will character or personal traits with criticism by turning it back Saying that because one finds
consequently happen too, in an attempt to undermine on the accuser - answering something difficult to understand
therefore A should not happen. their argument. criticism with criticism. that it’s therefore not true.
Colin asserts that if we allow children to After Sally presents an eloquent and The blue candidate accused the red Kirk drew a picture of a fish and a human
play video games, then the next thing compelling case for a more equitable candidate of committing the tu quoque and with effusive disdain asked Richard if
you know we’ll be living a in a post- taxation system, Sam asks the audience fallacy. The red candidate responded by he really thought we were stupid enough
apocalyptic zombie wasteland with no whether we should believe anything accusing the blue candidate of the same, to believe that a fish somehow turned
money for guard rails to protect people from a woman who isn’t married and after which ensued an hour of back and into a human through just, like, random
from slippery slopes. probably eats her own boogers. forth criticism with not much progress. things happening over time.

yourfallacy.is/slippery-slope yourfallacy.is/ad-hominem yourfallacy.is/tu-quoque yourfallacy.is/personal-incredulity

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 PAGE 3

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

special pleading loaded question burden of proof ambiguity

Moving the goalposts to create Asking a question that has an Saying that the burden of proof Using double meanings
exceptions when a claim is assumption built into it so that lies not with the person making or ambiguities of
shown to be false. it can’t be answered without the claim, but with someone language to mislead or
Edward Johns claimed to be psychic, appearing guilty. else to disprove. misrepresent the truth.
but when his ‘abilities’ were tested Grace and Helen were both romantically Bertrand declares that a teapot is, at this When the judge asked the defendant
under proper scientific conditions, they interested in Brad. One day, with Brad very moment, in orbit around the Sun why he hadn’t paid his parking fines, he
magically disappeared. sitting within earshot, Grace asked between the Earth and Mars, and that said that he shouldn’t have to pay them
Edward explained this saying that in an inquisitive tone whether Helen because no one can prove him wrong because the sign said ‘Fine for parking
one had to have faith in his abilities was having any problems with a his claim is therefore a valid one. here’ and so he naturally presumed that it
for them to work. fungal infection. would be fine to park there.

yourfallacy.is/special-pleading yourfallacy.is/loaded-question yourfallacy.is/burden-of-proof yourfallacy.is/ambiguity

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

the gambler’s bandwagon appeal composition/

fallacy to authority division
Appealing to popularity or
Believing that ‘runs’ occur the fact that many people do Using the opinion or position Assuming that what’s true about
to statistically independent something as an attempted of an authority figure, one part of something has to be
phenomena such as form of validation. or institution of authority, applied to all, or other, parts of it.
roulette wheel spins.
Shamus pointed a finger at Sean and in place of an actual argument. Daniel was a precocious child and had a
Red had come up six times in a row on asked him to explain how so many liking for logic. He reasoned that atoms
the roulette wheel, so Greg knew that it Unable to defend his argument that
people could believe in leprechauns if the Earth is flat, Bob said that his friend are invisible, and that he was made
was close to certain that black would be they’re only a silly old superstition. Sean of atoms and therefore invisible too.
next up. Suffering an economic form of Terry was a qualified botanist who also
wondered how so many people could believed the Earth to be flat, and had Unfortunately, despite his thinky skills, he
natural selection with this thinking, he believe in things based on popularity. lost the game of hide-and-go-seek.
soon lost all of his savings. even seen it from up in a tree.
yourfallacy.is/the-gamblers-fallacy yourfallacy.is/bandwagon yourfallacy.is/appeal-to-authority yourfallacy.is/composition-division

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 PAGE 4

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

no true scotsman genetic black-or-white begging the

question
Making what could be called Judging something good or bad Where two alternative states
an appeal to purity as a way to on the basis of where it comes are presented as the only A circular argument in which
dismiss relevant criticisms or from, or from whom it comes. possibilities, when in fact the conclusion is included
flaws of an argument. Accused on the 6 o’clock news of more possibilities exist. in the premise.
Angus declares that Scotsmen do not put corruption and taking bribes, the senator Whilst rallying support for his plan to The word of Zorbo the Great is flawless
sugar on their porridge, to which Lachlan said that we should all be very wary of fundamentally undermine citizens’ rights, and perfect. We know this because it
points out that he is a Scotsman and puts the things we hear in the media, because the Supreme Leader told the people they says so in The Great and Infallible Book
sugar on his porridge. Furious, like a true we all know how very unreliable the were either on his side, or on the side of Zorbo’s Best and Most Truest Things
Scot, Angus yells that no true Scotsman media can be. of the enemy. that are Definitely True and Should Not
sugars his porridge. Ever Be Questioned.

yourfallacy.is/no-true-scotsman yourfallacy.is/genetic yourfallacy.is/black-or-white yourfallacy.is/begging-the-question

your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is: your fallacy is:

appeal to nature anecdotal the texas middle ground

sharpshooter
Making the argument that Using personal experience or Saying that a compromise, or
because something is ‘natural’ an isolated example instead of Cherry-picking data clusters to middle point, between two
it is therefore valid, justified, a valid argument, especially suit an argument, or finding a extremes is the truth.
inevitable, good, or ideal. to dismiss statistics. pattern to fit a presumption. Holly said that vaccinations caused
The medicine man rolled into town on Jason said that that was all cool and autism in children, but her scientifically
The makers of Sugarette Candy Drinks
his bandwagon offering various natural everything, but his grandfather smoked, well-read friend Caleb said that this claim
point to research showing that of the
remedies, such as very special plain like, 30 cigarettes a day and lived until had been debunked and proven false.
five countries where Sugarette drinks
water. He said that it was only natural 97 - so don’t believe everything you read sell the most units, three of them are in Their friend Alice offered a compromise
that people should be wary of ‘artificial’ about meta-analyses of sound studies the top ten healthiest countries on Earth, that vaccinations cause some autism.
medicines such as antibiotics. showing proven causal relationships. therefore Sugarette drinks are healthy.

yourfallacy.is/appeal-to-nature yourfallacy.is/anecdotal yourfallacy.is/the-texas-sharpshooter yourfallacy.is/middle-ground

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yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is

yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is yourfallacy.is

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 PAGE 6

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

anchoring sunk cost availability curse of

fallacy heuristic knowledge
The first thing you judge
influences your judgment of You irrationally cling to things Your judgments are influenced Once you understand
all that follows. that have already cost by what springs most something you presume it
Human minds are associative in nature, you something. easily to mind. to be obvious to everyone.
so the order in which we receive How recent, emotionally powerful, or
When we’ve invested our time, money, It can be hard to remember our own
information helps determine the course unusual your memories are can make
or emotion into something, prior state of confusion when we didn’t
of our judgments and perceptions. them seem more relevant. This, in turn,
it hurts to let it go. understand something.
Be especially mindful of this bias can cause you to apply them too readily.
Ask yourself: had I not already invested When teaching someone something
during negotiations. Try to gain different perspectives and
something, would I still do so now? new, go slow (without being patronizing).
source statistical information.

yourbias.is/anchoring yourbias.is/the-sunk-cost-fallacy yourbias.is/the-availability-heuristic yourbias.is/the-curse-of-knowledge

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

confirmation dunning- belief bias self-serving bias

bias kruger effect You believe your failures are due
If a conclusion supports your
You favor things that confirm existing beliefs, you’ll rationalize to external factors, yet you’re
The more you know, the less personally responsible for
your existing beliefs. anything that supports it.
confident you’re likely to be. your successes.
We are primed to see and agree with It’s difficult for us to set aside our existing
ideas that fit our preconceptions, and to Because experts know just how
ideas to consider the true merits of an Many of us enjoy unearned privileges,
ignore and dismiss information much they don’t know, they tend to
argument. In practice this means that our luck and advantages that others don’t.
that conflicts with them. underestimate their ability; but it’s easy to
beliefs become impervious to criticism,
be overconfident when you have only a It’s easy to tell ourselves that we
“The first principle is that you must not and are perpetually reinforced.
simple idea of how things are. deserve these things, whilst blaming
fool yourself – and you are the easiest A useful thing to ask is ‘when and how circumstance when things don’t
person to fool.” - Richard Feynman Be skeptical of very confident opinions
did I get this belief?’ go our way.
that lack expert understanding.
yourbias.is/confirmation-bias yourbias.is/the-dunning-kruger-effect yourbias.is/belief-bias yourbias.is/self-serving-bias

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 PAGE 7

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

the backfire effect the barnum effect groupthink negativity bias

When your core beliefs are You see personal specifics You let the social dynamics of You allow negative things to
challenged, it can cause you to in vague statements by a group situation override the disproportionately influence
believe even more strongly. filling in the gaps. best outcomes. your thinking.
We can experience being wrong about Psychics, astrologers and others use this Dissent can be uncomfortable and so The pain of loss and hurt are felt more
some ideas as an attack upon our very bias to make it seem like they’re telling often the most confident or first voice keenly and persistently than the fleeting
selves, or our tribal identity. you something personally relevant. will determine group decisions. gratification of pleasant things.
This can lead to motivated reasoning Try to think critically and see how things Try to facilitate objective means of We are primed for survival, and our
which causes us to reinforce a broader could be interpreted to apply to evaluation and critical thinking practices aversion to pain can distort our judgment
narrative, despite disconfirming evidence anyone, not just you. as a group activity. for a modern world.
relating to a particular fact.

yourbias.is/the-backfire-effect yourbias.is/the-barnum-effect yourbias.is/groupthink yourbias.is/negativity-bias

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

declinism framing effect fundamental the halo effect

You allow yourself to be attribution error
You remember the past as better How much you like someone,
than it was, and expect the unduly influenced by context You judge others on their or how attractive they
future to be worse than and delivery. character, but yourself on are, influences your other
evidence suggests it will be. No one like to think of themselves as the situation. judgments of them.
easily manipulated, however it’s only
Despite living in the most peaceful and when we have the intellectual humility It’s not only kind to view others’ If you notice that you’re giving
prosperous time in history, many people to accept the fact that we can be perspectives with charity, consistently high or low marks across the
believe things are getting worse. influenced, that we can limit how much it’s more objective too. board, it’s worth considering that your
we actually are. Try to be mindful to err on the side of judgment may be suffering from
Use metrics such as life expectancy,
taking personal responsibility rather than the halo effect.
levels of crime and violence, and Try to be mindful of how things are
prosperity statistics. being framed or what’s being left out. justifying and blaming.
yourbias.is/declinism yourbias.is/the-framing-effect yourbias.is/fundamental-attribution-error yourbias.is/the-halo-effect

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 PAGE 8

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

optimism pessimism the just world in-group bias

bias bias hypothesis
You unfairly favor those who
You overestimate the likelihood You overestimate the likelihood Your preference for a just world belong to your group.
of positive outcomes. of negative outcomes. makes you presume that it exists. We presume that we’re fair and impartial,
There can be benefits to a positive Pessimism is often a defense mechanism A world in which people don’t always get but the truth is that we automatically
attitude, but it’s unwise to allow this to against disappointment. what they deserve is an uncomfortable favor those who are most like us, or
affect our ability to be realistic. one that threatens our preferred narrative. belong to our groups.
Perhaps the worst aspect of pessimism
Ironically, if you’re making more is that even if something good happens, A more just world requires understanding Try to imagine yourself in the position of
rational judgments you’ll actually have you’ll probably feel pessmistic rather than blame. Try to remember those in out-groups; whilst also attempting
a lot more to feel positive about. about it anyway. that we’re all fallible, and that bad things to be dispassionate when judging those
happen to good people. who belong to your groups.

yourbias.is/optimism-bias yourbias.is/pessimism-bias yourbias.is/just-world-hypothesis yourbias.is/in-group-bias

your bias is: your bias is: your bias is: your bias is:

the placebo effect the bystander reactance spotlight effect

effect
If you believe you’re taking You’d rather do the opposite You overestimate how much
medicine it can sometimes You presume someone else is of what someone is trying to people notice how you
‘work’ even if it’s fake. going to do something in an make you do. look and act.
The placebo effect can work for stuff that emergency situation. When we feel our liberty is being Instead of worrying about how you’re
our mind influences (such as pain) but When something terrible is happening in constrained, our inclination is to resist; being judged, consider how you’re
not so much for things like viruses a public setting we can experience a kind however in doing so we can making others feel.
or broken bones. of shock and mental paralysis. overcompensate.
They’ll notice this much more,
Keep a healthy body and bank balance If there’s an emergency situation, Wisdom springs from reflection, and you’ll also be making the
by using evidence-based medicine presume to be the one who will help. folly from reaction. world a better place.
from a qualified doctor.

yourbias.is/the-placebo-effect yourbias.is/the-bystander-effect yourbias.is/reactance yourbias.is/the-spotlight-effect

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BACKS : please note that your laser printer will probably not print backs’ position exactly matched so good luck! Single-sided is likely much easier (omit these pages if you want single-sided) PAGE 9

yourbias.is yourbias.is yourbias.is yourbias.is

yourbias.is yourbias.is yourbias.is yourbias.is

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 PAGE 10

game card game card game card call out card

The Impaired Bad Thinking What’s That Your thinking

Thinking Game Heads Up Fallacy? is bad and you
Lay all 24 blue fallacy cards out. Take a random fallacy or bias card
Read out the example at the bottom
of a blue fallacy card.
should feel bad.
and put it on your forehead with the If the first player to speak correctly
Watch a faux news channel, If you’ve been given this card
front facing outwards but without identifies the fallacy, you must
political debate, etc.
looking at it. Other players can take one drink. If they get it wrong, it’s because the things you said
The first player to vocally identify commit the fallacy or enact the bias were so full of fallacies and
everyone else must take one drink
a fallacy being committed can to give you clues as to what it is e.g.
nominate someone to drink. if you’re holding the Appeal to Nature
then the next player draws a card. dodgy logic that it would take
Repeat until equilibrium of idiocy Fallacy card someone might say G-rated version: Drinks are replaced too long to identify all of them.
‘Gwyneth’ or ‘Wow, this homeopathy with points. Whoever has the most
with what you’re watching Please go to yourfallacy.is and familiarize
water is totally curing my ignorance’. points wins a wholesome, sober
is achieved. yourself with all the things.
sense of self-satisfaction.

call out card call out card call out card call out card

Your thinking Your thinking Your thinking Your thinking

is bad and you is bad and you is bad and you is bad and you
should feel bad. should feel bad. should feel bad. should feel bad.
If you’ve been given this card If you’ve been given this card If you’ve been given this card If you’ve been given this card
it’s because the things you said it’s because the things you said it’s because the things you said it’s because the things you said
were so full of fallacies and were so full of fallacies and were so full of fallacies and were so full of fallacies and
dodgy logic that it would take dodgy logic that it would take dodgy logic that it would take dodgy logic that it would take
too long to identify all of them. too long to identify all of them. too long to identify all of them. too long to identify all of them.
Please go to yourfallacy.is and familiarize Please go to yourfallacy.is and familiarize Please go to yourfallacy.is and familiarize Please go to yourfallacy.is and familiarize
yourself with all the things. yourself with all the things. yourself with all the things. yourself with all the things.

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