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The All New Wason Selection Test

Wason Test - Adults

Elementary, My Dear Wason!

The Wason Selection Test has been said to show that human reasoning has evolved in a manner to detect deception. This explains why abstract reasoning tests are difficult, but if you have a test with practical context where there a possibility of deception, people figure it out.

Well, here's a test that is in a most familiar context. But it doesn't involve the possibility of cheating. So the readers can try it out and form their own conclusions whether this problem is easier than abstract tests.

OK, let's say four people decide to have some friends over to watch a ball game. Naturally their friends, as custom demands, bring over refreshments. And they choose from two popular brands. But only one brand was brought to any particular party.

Then after the game, the hosts look in the fridge to see what they have left. They summarize the outcomes on cards.

Side 1:   The brand that was put in the fridge.
Side 2:   The number that's left over.

Then they lay the cards down on a table like this:

0 Bud 3 Schlitz

So which cards do we turn over to find out if the statement:

If you're out of Schlitz, then you're out of beer.

... is TRUE?

To make things a bit clearer:

   You can't run out of a brand you didn't have. That is, if you had Bud, you can't run out of Schlitz.
   We only want the minimum number of cards and what they are.

At this point the readers can take the test themselves. And then they can check 1) what seems to be a reasonable answer, and then 2) see if the reasonable answer is the correct answer. That is, they can if they just click here.