Watson Glaser Recognition of Assumptions
Is the speaker taking this for granted when making the statement? Your ability to spot what a speaker quietly takes for granted: the unstated ideas that have to be true for the statement or argument to make sense.
Recognition of Assumptions · Example
"The council should build a second bridge, because the old one causes long traffic jams every morning."
Proposed statement
A second bridge would reduce the traffic jams.
Practice tests
Every practice set has 10 questions. Pick one to start.
Every answer option, explained
What you'll actually see
A short statement, recommendation or argument. 3 to 5 proposed assumptions per statement. The real test uses exactly these two options: 'Assumption made' and 'Assumption not made'. Each statement is followed by several proposed assumptions, and the instructions tell you to judge each one independently. Our practice items follow the same format.
Assumption made
The statement would not make sense, or the argument would not work, unless this idea were true. The speaker is relying on it, even if they do not say it.
Statement: 'We should leave now so that we arrive before the shop closes.' Assumption: 'The shop is still open.' Made, because the plan makes no sense otherwise.
Assumption not made
The speaker does not need this idea. It may be a sensible extra, a different reason or a stronger claim than the one the speaker made, but the statement works without it.
Statement: 'We should leave now so that we arrive before the shop closes.' Assumption: 'The shop sells cheaper goods than other shops.' Not made, because price is never mentioned.
Worked example
"The council should build a second bridge, because the old one causes long traffic jams every morning."
Statement 1
A second bridge would reduce the traffic jams.
The recommendation only makes sense if the new bridge will help with the problem. If it would not reduce the jams, the reason given would be pointless, so the speaker takes it for granted.
Assumption made
Statement 2
It is possible to build a second bridge.
The speaker proposes building a bridge. Nobody recommends something that is impossible, so this is taken for granted.
Assumption made
Statement 3
The old bridge is unsafe.
The only reason given is traffic jams. Safety is never mentioned, and the argument works perfectly well whether the old bridge is safe or not.
Assumption not made
Statement 4
Nobody will object to the building of a second bridge.
The speaker recommends the bridge but does not say or suggest that there will be no objections. 'Nobody' is a very strong claim that the argument does not need.
Assumption not made
Know what is being assessed
How Recognition of Assumptions works
An assumption is something that is taken for granted without being said. If you say 'I will be a qualified solicitor in two months', you take for granted that you will still be alive, that you will pass your exams and that nothing will stop you from finishing.
Each exercise gives you a statement. Below it are several proposed assumptions. For each one, decide whether the person making the statement is really taking it for granted.
Choose 'Assumption made' if the speaker is taking the idea for granted, whether or not the idea is actually true. Choose 'Assumption not made' if the idea is not necessarily taken for granted in the statement.
Judge every assumption independently. You are not asked whether the statement is wise or whether the assumption is true, only whether the speaker relies on it.
In the full test you have about one minute per question. Most assumption items can be judged in about 20 to 40 seconds with the 'imagine it is false' test. If an item is taking longer, make your best judgement and move on.
Where candidates lose points
- True in real life, so 'made'. An idea can be true and sensible but still not be needed by the speaker. Only what the statement relies on counts.
- Extreme wording. Words like 'always', 'never', 'all', 'only' and 'every' turn a modest assumption into a much stronger claim that the speaker is unlikely to need.
- A different reason for the same conclusion. The speaker gave one reason. A second, separate reason that supports the same conclusion is not taken for granted unless the argument depends on it.
- Mixing up an assumption with a consequence. What might follow from the plan is not the same as what the plan rests on. An assumption is something the statement needs first, not something that comes after.
- Treating the speaker's goal as an assumption about everyone. A speaker who wants something does not necessarily assume that everyone else wants it too.
- Missing the obvious one. Simple presuppositions, like 'the thing is possible' or 'the action will have the effect intended', are easy to overlook because they are so basic. They are usually 'made'.
A smarter approach
- 01
Read the statement and find its main claim and its reason. Ask yourself what the speaker wants to achieve and how they think it will be achieved.
- 02
Read the proposed assumption. Put it in your own words so that you know exactly what it claims.
- 03
Test it: imagine the assumption is false. Would the statement fall apart or become pointless? If so, it is taken for granted: 'Assumption made'.
- 04
If the statement still works perfectly well without the idea, choose 'Assumption not made'.
- 05
Check the wording of the assumption. Words such as 'always', 'never', 'only', 'everyone' and 'best' make it much stronger than most statements need.
Tips for Recognition of Assumptions
Use the 'imagine it is false' test
Use the 'imagine it is false' test. If the speaker's point collapses when the assumption is false, the assumption is made. If nothing changes, it is not made.
Four kinds of assumption are made again and again: that the plan is possible, that the plan will work (a link between action and result), that the goal is worth wanting, and that a comparison holds (for example 'plane is quicker than train').
Four kinds of assumption are made again and again: that the plan is possible, that the plan will work (a link between action and result), that the goal is worth wanting, and that a comparison holds (for example 'plane is quicker than train').
Assumptions that are NOT made are usually an extra idea that was never mentioned, an extreme version of the idea ('always', 'all', 'only'), a different reason for the same conclusion, or a consequence of the plan that the speaker did not claim.
Assumptions that are NOT made are usually an extra idea that was never mentioned, an extreme version of the idea ('always', 'all', 'only'), a different reason for the same conclusion, or a consequence of the plan that the speaker did not claim.
Do not ask whether the assumption is true or sensible
Do not ask whether the assumption is true or sensible. Many assumptions are made 'justifiably or not', as the official instructions say.
Do not ask whether you agree with the speaker
Do not ask whether you agree with the speaker. Your opinion of the statement has no effect on the answer.
Judge each assumption separately
Judge each assumption separately. One assumption being made says nothing about the next one.
A good assumption item is close to the statement
A good assumption item is close to the statement. If the proposed assumption introduces a new topic, such as price, comfort or safety, that the statement never mentions, it is probably 'not made'.
Take care with 'cannot' and 'must' wordings
Take care with 'cannot' and 'must' wordings. A recommendation ('we should ...') assumes that the thing recommended is possible and useful, but not that nobody will object.
Make the format familiar before test day.
Start with a free set, then build up to full-length mock tests.