How Watson Glaser argument questions work
Each set opens with a question, such as whether a policy should be introduced, followed by several arguments for and against. You mark each one Strong Argument or Weak Argument.
A strong argument is both important and directly related to the question. A weak one is off the point, trivial, or muddles the issue. Whether the argument is for or against does not matter, and neither does whether you agree with it.
Alongside neutral topics, Pearson includes political, economic and social ones that people feel strongly about, to test whether you can judge arguments regardless of your views.
How to tell a strong argument from a weak one
Ask three questions of every argument:
- Does it address the question actually asked, or a nearby one?
- Does it give a reason that would matter to someone making the decision, such as cost, safety, fairness or effect on people?
- Is it a label, a tradition or a matter of taste dressed up as a reason? If so, it is weak.
- Strong needs a yes to the first two and a no to the third.
Worked example
Question: “Should employers be required to publish the salary range in every job advert?”
- “Yes. Candidates would know before applying whether the job pays enough, saving time for them and for employers.” Strong. It is directly about the effect of the rule and the effect matters.
- “Yes. Job adverts with figures in them look more professional.” Weak. Appearance is trivial next to the question being decided.
- “No. Small businesses would have to reveal their pay to competitors, who could use it to recruit their staff.” Strong. It names a real cost of the rule to the people it affects.
- “No. Some candidates never read job adverts carefully.” Weak. Whether or not it is true, it does not bear on whether the range should be published.
Tips for the real argument questions
- Set your opinion aside before you read the arguments. You will meet topics you care about.
- Check your answers across both sides. If every argument for one side ends up strong, your views may be leaking in.
- Watch for arguments that appeal to what has always been done, what is popular, or what sounds modern. They are usually weak.
- Do not mark an argument weak because it is short or plainly worded. Strength comes from relevance and importance, not style.
Practise Evaluation of Arguments on CogniPrep
Our Evaluation of Arguments game gives you 12 arguments a run, from a pool of 24, with 50 seconds on each and no going back; an unanswered argument counts as wrong. The score out of 100 is mostly accuracy, plus pace, how evenly you judge Strong and Weak arguments, and how reliably you spot the weak ones. Pearson sets no time per argument, so the clock is ours.