What does deductive reasoning involve?

Deductive reasoning involves starting with general principles or premises and deriving specific conclusions from them. Thislogical process is often structured in a way where, if the general principles are deemed true, the conclusions must also be true. For instance, if one accepts the premise that all humans are mortal (a general principle), they can deduce that a specific individual, such as Socrates, must also be mortal.

In contrast, the other options highlight different forms of reasoning. One option focuses on moving from specific facts to general conclusions, which is characterized as inductive reasoning. Another option emphasizes hypothesis testing through observations, which is common in scientific research rather than logical deduction. Lastly, experimentation to collect data pertains more to the scientific method, which involves exploring questions through testing rather than deriving conclusions from established principles. Each of these approaches serves different purposes in reasoning and critical thinking, but only deductive reasoning fits the description of deriving specific conclusions from general principles.