"I bought a pair of shoes from that store that immediately fell apart. Their shoes are no good" may commit which fallacy?
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/fallacies/
Scroll down and read all about the first explanation and examples given (right under the words SO WHAT DO FALLACIES LOOK LIKE). Let us know what you think.
The statement "I bought a pair of shoes from that store that immediately fell apart. Their shoes are no good" may commit the fallacy of hasty generalization. Hasty generalization occurs when a conclusion is drawn based on insufficient evidence or a limited sample size. In this case, the person is generalizing the quality of all the shoes sold by that store based on their own negative experience with one pair of shoes.
To identify this fallacy, you can follow these steps:
1. Identify the specific claim or conclusion being made. In this case, the claim is that "Their shoes are no good."
2. Assess the evidence provided to support the claim. In this case, the evidence is limited to the person's negative experience with one pair of shoes that fell apart.
3. Determine if the evidence is sufficient to support the claim. In this case, the evidence of one pair of shoes is inadequate to make a generalization about the entire store's shoe quality.
4. If the evidence is insufficient, it is likely a hasty generalization fallacy has been committed.
By following these steps, you can recognize when someone is making a hasty generalization and avoid relying on limited evidence to make generalized claims.