CR Patterns & CR Categories: Analysis vs Plan

Yes I am!

Hi Pdirienzo,

Rather than 'piggyback' on this thread, I suggest that you start a new thread that provides a bit more information on how you've been studying, your Score Goal, when you want to take the GMAT, etc. If you'd like to discuss any of that privately, then you can feel free to PM or email me directly).

GMAT assassins aren't born, they're made,
Rich

I have the same question as the original poster. To which types of CR questions (necessary assumption, evaluate, paradox, strengthen, weaken, role of argument, inference, etc.) do the "critical reasoning analysis/critique" and "critical reasoning construction/plan" labels apply? The explanation given on the ESR is unclear to me.

EDIT: upon reading the "Official Guide" (2018), I am not sure that these ESR CR categories fit into the question types that I identified.

Hi ChiefsFan,

I assume that you just took your GMAT? If so, how did things go? Are you looking for some general advice on how to improve your Critical Reasoning skills?

Excellent analysis and I must say, Even I am wondering the same thing. How would one bifurcate between the two sections? How to put existing catagories -strenthen, weaken, assumption etc- into this two segments? The answer to this question is necessary in improving my gmat score.

Best
Darshak



@dabaobao
I'm creating this CR thread to document all CR patterns. I have seen some patterns in CR Qs that are repeated quite often. While some CR patterns have been discussed in details, there are many patterns that people haven't noticed since they haven't been discussed anywhere. I believe that you can really improve your timing for CR if you can spot patterns. I encourage everyone to use this thread to post any pattern that you identify while practicing CRs.

I would really appreciate if some experts could discuss the CR Categories (Analysis/Critique vs Construction/Plan) and share some unknown patterns that might be helpful for everyone to know.
GMATNinja VeritasKarishma AjiteshArun

Discussed in detail everywhere including CR Bible:

1) Cause & Effect
2) Numbers & Percentages

Discussed in some places:

1) Sampling (Weaken: Unrepresentative Sample; Strengthen/Assumption: Representative Sample)
2) Qualified Conclusion (Weaken: Condition won't be met; Strengthen/Assumption: Condition will be met)

Some patterns that I've spotted and that haven't been discussed/documented:

1) Plan (Weaken: Imperfect Implementation; Strengthen/Assumption: Perfect Implementation)

2) Relationship between 3 things
https://gmatclub.com/forum/when-limitat ... 41065.html

Correlation between A (nuclear-arms testing) & B (people saving money)
Conclusion: C (Perceived threat of nuclear catastrophe), B changes (saving decreases)

Assumption: A is related to C (people’s perception of the threat of nuclear catastrophe depends on the amount of nuclear -arms testing being done)

3) Average of 2 things
https://gmatclub.com/forum/life-expecta ... 43829.html

"Life expectancy" is the average age at death of the entire live-born population. In the middle of the nineteenth century, life expectancy in North America was 40 years, whereas now it is nearly 80 years. Thus, in those days, people must have been considered old at age that we now consider the prime of life. 

Weakener: Considering extremes (Most of the gains in life expectancy in the last 150 years have come from reductions in the number of infants who die in their first year of life.) 

CR Categories: Analysis vs Plan

I was wondering if someone could go in depth discussing the 2 CR categories that are seen on ESR. Currently, we have enough books/courses/posts discussing CR types such as Assumption, Inference, Weaken and so on. I'm not sure how those CR types would fit in these categories.

ESR guide describes these CR categories as:
1) The Critical Reasoning Analysis/Critique graph displays the percentage of questions answered correctly. Problems in this category test your ability to analyze the information given to you in the passage and carefully make reasoned judgments demonstrated by evaluating and breaking down an argument.
2) The Critical Reasoning Construction/Plan graph displays the percentage of questions answered correctly. Problems identified in this category test your ability to use the information given in a passage to construct a plan of action for find the best logical solution.[/quote]