Cause and effect, courses of action and assumptions

These three question types look like general knowledge but are pure logic. Each gives you a short statement and a fixed set of answer options, and each has a test that settles most questions in under a minute. What costs marks is answering from opinion ("I think the bank should do this") instead of from the test.

They tend to appear in the mains reasoning section, sometimes mixed with critical reasoning. The number of questions varies by year, so treat them as a steady side topic rather than a priority.

Cause and effect

You get two statements and decide how they are linked. The standard options are:

The test. Try "Because I, II." Then try "Because II, I." If one reads naturally, that is your direction. If neither does, ask whether a single unstated event could have caused both. If yes, it is (e). If the two events are simply unrelated, it is (d). Option (c) is rarely correct.

Watch the time order. A cause comes before its effect. If a statement uses "last week" and the other "today", the earlier one is the only possible cause.

Worked examples: cause and effect

Example 1. I. The RBI raised the repo rate. II. Banks increased their lending rates.

A higher repo rate raises what banks pay to borrow from the RBI, and banks usually pass part of that on. "Because the RBI raised the repo rate, banks raised lending rates" reads naturally. (a).

Example 2. I. Many bank branches in the city had very few visitors on Tuesday. II. Heavy rain flooded several roads in the city on Tuesday.

"Because roads flooded, branches had few visitors" works; the reverse does not. (b).

Example 3. I. Schools in the district were closed on Monday. II. Bank branches in the district shut early on Monday.

Neither causes the other, but one event, such as a storm warning or a local holiday, could explain both. (e).

Example 4. I. The price of onions rose sharply in the city. II. Car sales in the city fell last month.

No link, and nothing in common is likely to cause both. (d).

Courses of action

A problem is stated, followed by two or three suggested actions. You mark which should be followed. A good course of action is:

• practical: it can actually be carried out;
• relevant: it addresses the problem stated, not a different one;
• proportionate: it solves the problem without causing a bigger one.

Actions that shut things down, ban an activity or punish everyone for one person's fault usually fail the third test. Actions that "look into" a problem, inform people, or fix the immediate damage usually pass.

Worked examples: courses of action

Example 5. Several ATMs in a city ran out of cash during a festival weekend.

• I. Banks should plan cash refills based on expected festival demand.
• II. ATMs should be shut during festivals.

I is practical and addresses the cause. II is extreme and makes the problem worse. Only I follows.

Example 6. Several customers of a bank lost money to fraudsters who called them pretending to be bank officials and asked for their OTPs.

• I. The bank should warn customers by SMS and in its app never to share an OTP with anyone.
• II. The bank should stop sending OTPs altogether.
• III. The bank should report the fraud to the police.

I prevents repeat cases. III deals with the crime already committed. II removes a security step and creates a bigger risk. I and III follow.

Implicit assumptions

A statement, often a notice, an advertisement or a decision, takes something for granted. You mark which assumptions are implicit. The usual options are: only I, only II, either I or II, neither, or both.

The test. If the assumption were false, would the statement still make sense? If it would not, the assumption is implicit.

What is usually not implicit: anything with "all", "only", "always" or "best", comparisons with competitors, and details the statement never needed.

Worked example: an advertisement

Example 7. An advertisement says: "Pay all your bills in seconds with our app."

• I. People want to pay bills quickly.
• II. No other app lets people pay bills.

If people did not care about speed, the advertisement would make no sense, so I is implicit. The advertisement works whether or not other apps exist, so II is not. Only I is implicit.

Comparing the three types

Practice set

1. Cause and effect. I. Heavy rain flooded several roads. II. Many bank branches recorded fewer visitors that day.
2. Cause and effect. I. Customers queued for hours at a bank's branches. II. The bank's online banking service was down all day.
3. Cause and effect. I. All flights from the city's airport were cancelled on Friday. II. Several trains leaving the city were cancelled on Friday.
4. Course of action. Customers complain of long queues at a branch at month-end. I. Open additional counters on the busiest days. II. Stop accepting cash deposits at month-end.
5. Course of action. A bank finds that many new education-loan borrowers do not know when repayment begins. I. Explain the repayment schedule in writing when the loan is sanctioned. II. Stop giving education loans. III. Send a reminder before the first instalment is due.
6. Course of action. Rainwater has leaked into a bank's record room. I. Move the records to a dry place at once. II. Get the roof repaired.
7. Assumption. A notice says: "Carry your passbook when you visit the branch." I. The branch may need the passbook for some services. II. All customers have lost their passbooks.
8. Assumption. An aspirant decides to take one full-length mock test every Sunday until the SBI PO mains. I. Mock tests help in preparing for the mains. II. The aspirant will have time on Sundays.

Answers:

1. (a). Flooded roads keep people at home. The reverse makes no sense.
2. (b). With online banking down, customers had to go to branches.
3. (e). Neither causes the other, but one event, such as a storm, could cause both.
4. Only I. II is extreme and harms the customers it is meant to serve.
5. I and III. Both address the gap in information. II punishes all future students for a communication problem.
6. Both. I limits the damage now; II stops it happening again.
7. Only I. II is extreme; the notice makes sense without it.
8. Both. If mocks did not help, or the aspirant had no time on Sundays, the decision would make no sense.

What to do next

• Learn the five cause-and-effect options in order, so you never have to re-read them in the exam.
• Do five questions of each type a day for a week, writing the test you applied next to each answer.
• Circle every extreme word ("all", "only", "stop", "ban") you meet in the options; most of them mark a wrong answer.
• Pair this with critical reasoning, and see where both fit in the mains reasoning section.