Examples:

1. John went to the store because he wanted to see Maria. (This is a fallacy if, in fact, John went to the library.)
2. The reason why those workers people oppose the strike is that they are afraid of losing their jobs. (This attempts to explain why workers oppose the strike. But suppose they just voted to continue the strike, Then in fact, they don't oppose the strike. [This sounds made up, but it actually happened.])

Convincing Others: Identify the phenomenon which is being explained. Show that there is no reason to believe that the phenomenon has actually occurred.

Reference: Cedarblom and Paulsen: 158

Examples:

1. The reason why most bachelors are timid is that their mothers were domineering. (This attempts to explain why most bachelors are timid. However, it is known that the author bases her generalization on two timid bachelors she once knew.)
2. Look how rapidly everything is getting eaten! They must prefer my cooking to yours! (..a group of workers who hadn't eaten all day long.)
3. They must have made him really angry! He slammed the door very loudly upon leaving. (In fact, a strong gust of wind caught the door at that precise moment when he was closing it.)

Convincing Others: Identify the phenomenon which is being explained. Show that the evidence advanced to support the existence of the phenomenon was manipulated in some way.

Reference: Cedarblom and Paulsen: 160

We test a theory by making predictions with it. For example, a theory may predict that light bends under certain conditions, or that a liquid will change color if sprayed with acid, or that a psychotic person will respond badly to particular stimuli. If the predicted event fails to occur, then this is evidence against the theory.

A theory cannot be tested if we cannot make predictions with it. It is also untestable when it predicts events which would occur whether or not the theory were true.

Examples:

1. I won the lottery because my psychic aura made me win. (The way to test this theory is to try it again. But the person responds that her aura worked in that one case only. There is thus no way to determine whether her win was the result of an aura or just of luck.)
2. The reason why everything exists is that God created it. (This may be true, but there is no way to test the theory. No evidence in the world could possibly show that this theory is false, because any evidence would have to be created by God, according to the theory.)

Convincing Others: Identify the theory. Show that it makes no predictions or, if it does make predictions, that the predictions cannot ever be wrong, even if the theory is false.

Reference: Cedarblom and Paulsen: 161

Examples:

1. They became hostile toward hippies in the 1960s because of their parents' resentment toward children. (A better theory would be to say that they became hostile toward hippies because hippies are different, and people fear things which are different. This theory would thus explain not only hostility toward hippies, but also other forms of hostility.)
2. People get schizophrenia because different parts of their brains split apart. (Actually, schizophrenia is not as simple as that. Some patients with a "split brain" never develop schizophrenia.)

Convincing Others: Generally, the real world is too complex for there to be only one cause for some particular phenomenon or only one consequence to a particular cause. Argue that such theories are likely to be incomplete. Point out another possibility.

Reference: Cedarblom and Paulsen: 163

Examples:

1. My cat likes tuna because she's a cat. (This theory asserts only that cats like tuna, without explaining why.)
2. Ronald Reagan was militaristic because he was American. (True, he was American, but what was it about being American that made him militaristic? The theory offers no explanation.)
3. You're just saying that because you belong to the Union. (This attempt at dismissal implies that your behavior is frivolous. However, it fails because it is not an explanation at all. Suppose everyone in the Union were to "say that." Then what? The speaker needs to address the cause — to ask why they are "saying that" — before deciding that it is frivolous.)

Convincing Others: Theories of this sort attempt to explain a phenomenon by showing that it is part of a category or classification. Argue that a viable theory should refer to a cause, not a classification.

Reference: Cedarblom and Paulsen: 164