Comparative Forms of Reasoning

All of us use all three of these -- plus other things like intuition and habit and so forth -- to get through our days. But deductive reasoning is my first love.

Admittedly, formal deductive reasoning isn't available for many ordinary life choices; there's too much uncertainty and too many gaps in our information. But I spend much of my days teaching symbolic logic and logic programming and theory of computing, so I do get to use deductive reasoning in my daily life. In some ways, mathematics feels more real to me than the physical world.

And now, for your enjoyment, an xkcd cartoon:

I think I relate mostly to Abductive reasoning as its less rigid I think. Allows for more exploration of ideas and possibilities. But then I think all are important and usual in certain xituations depending on the situation.

Like say crime investigation and forensics may use all but deductive reasoning may be best to deduce the specific of the crime, the forensics of the crime. On the otherhand I think abductive may be best in criminal profiling when working or personality and subjective traits that may require more abstract thinking as far as getting inside the mind of a criminal.

I think abductive reasoning may be best for determining the soft sciences. But especially behaviour and psychology which includes culture and beliefs. Though this is more subjective, dealing with phenomenal beliefs and epistemics and conscious experiences. Whereas I think the hard sciences use deductive and inductive reasoning more.

But I think abductive thinking allows for alternative ways to gather the evidence. Such as from testimony or experiences. Or lived experiences. Finding patterns and similarities in the experiences. Then deducing inferences from the data of those experiences as to what they may represent.

The important thing is at first it allows for open exploration of a phenomena to understand it without stipulating that a rigid set of methodology is applied. So as to just gather data on the experiential aspects. Which may give good knowledge and a different kind of knowledge.

Without looking at the tape > I would say when I reason I am deductive, meaning I use what I have for consideration, to draw a conclusion. Usually, I mean deductive by looking at the scripture I have and drawing some conclusion.

However, I understand that our **character** has a lot to do with what we already are ready to understand and accept. And God is able to override how we are, to bring us to better.

As for drawing conclusions from Internet and other sources of information, I tend not to assume any source is infallible. And therefore I do not draw conclusions about people and news and politics. But I pray for choices guided supernaturally by God.

I have been quite surprised by what happened with the Israelites in Joshua chapter nine. The Gibeonites rigged "obvious" evidence to prove they were from a far country, so the Jewish leaders would make a peace covenant with them.

The Jewish leaders did not make sure with God, but only evaluated logically according to the outward evidence.

I can see from this, how God expects us to make sure with Him about anything, never to go only by the show and tell of people. To me, this was quite a surprise, considering how a "number" of people seem to expect me to just trust them and not hope for God to be personally involved in every thing of our lives. However, it is written >

"Test all things; hold fast what is good." (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

But I see why we can leave God out > we can be making choices about what >we< want. But in order to test what is "good", even at every moment, we need to submit to how God personally guides us, by the moment, to all He knows is "good". And our logic can not know what will be "good" that therefore fits together with all that God knows He has going on, in our relating with people we know, and in coordination with all else. However, I think we have a basic to help us to always be coordinated by God with all He knows He is doing >

"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful." (Colossians 3:15)