MBA CET Logical Reasoning Notes Study Material PDF

1. Syllogisms

Syllogisms involve drawing conclusions from two or more premises that are asserted or assumed to be true. They test your ability to logically deduce conclusions from given statements.

Example

Statements:

1. All dogs are animals.
2. All animals have four legs.

Conclusion:

• Therefore, all dogs have four legs.

Explanation: Given that all dogs are animals and all animals have four legs, it logically follows that all dogs have four legs.

2. Direction

Direction questions test your ability to understand and interpret directions and spatial orientation.

Example

Question: John starts walking north and walks 10 km. He then turns right and walks 5 km. He turns right again and walks 10 km. In which direction is he facing now?

Answer: South.

Explanation: John turns right twice from his original north direction, which makes him face south.

3. Blood Relations

Blood relation questions involve determining relationships between family members based on given information.

Example

Question: A is the father of B. B is the sister of C. How is C related to A?

Answer: C is the son or daughter of A.

Explanation: Since B is the sister of C, C must be either the son or daughter of A.

4. Coding/Decoding

Coding/Decoding questions involve converting information from one form to another based on a specific pattern or rule.

Example

Question: If ‘CAT’ is coded as ‘3120’, how is ‘DOG’ coded?

Answer: The coding rule isn’t clear based on the given example. A correct coding rule needs to be established. Let’s use a simple positional value coding for clarity:

• C (3), A (1), T (20)
• Code = 3 1 20 For ‘DOG’:
• D (4), O (15), G (7)
• Code = 4 15 7

Explanation: Assign each letter a number based on its position in the alphabet (A=1, B=2, …, Z=26). Using this method, DOG is coded as 4 15 7.

5. Input/Output

Input/Output questions involve a sequence of steps or operations applied to input to produce output, requiring the identification of the pattern or rule governing the transformation.

Example

Question: Input: 4, 8, 6, 2
Step 1: 8, 16, 12, 4
Step 2: 16, 32, 24, 8
What will be the output after Step 3?

Answer: 32, 64, 48, 16.

Explanation: Each number is doubled in each subsequent step.

6. Venn Diagram

Venn Diagram questions involve representing logical relations between different sets visually.

Example

Question: Draw a Venn Diagram to show the relationship between teachers, women, and tennis players.

Answer: Three intersecting circles, where:

• One circle represents teachers.
• One circle represents women.
• One circle represents tennis players.
• The intersections represent individuals who fit into more than one category.

7. Conditional Coding

Conditional coding questions involve encoding data based on specific conditions or rules.

Example

Question: If ‘A’ is coded as ‘1’, ‘B’ as ‘2’, …, ‘Z’ as ‘26’, what is the code for the word ‘CAB’?

Answer: 312.

Explanation: C=3, A=1, B=2.

8. Selection Criteria

Selection criteria questions involve selecting candidates or items based on given criteria or conditions.

Example

Question: A company requires candidates who are graduates, have more than 3 years of experience, and are below 30 years of age. John is a 28-year-old graduate with 4 years of experience. Is John eligible?

Answer: Yes.

Explanation: John meets all the specified criteria.

9. Tracing Sequential Output

Tracing sequential output questions involve following a sequence of operations to trace the final output.

Example

Question: Input: 2, 4, 6, 8
Operation: Add 2 to each number
Output: 4, 6, 8, 10

Explanation: Each number in the sequence is increased by 2.

10. Linear and Circular Arrangement

Linear and circular arrangement questions involve arranging items or individuals in a line or circle according to given conditions.

Example (Linear Arrangement)

Question: Five friends A, B, C, D, and E are sitting in a row. B is to the right of A, but to the left of C. A is at one end. Who is sitting in the middle?

Answer: C.

Explanation: The arrangement is A, B, C, D, E.

Example (Circular Arrangement)

Question: Six people are sitting around a circular table. A is to the immediate left of B, who is directly opposite C. Who is to the immediate right of C?

Answer: E (assuming a clockwise arrangement).

Explanation: Considering the positions, E is to the immediate right of C.

11. Symbol-based Comparison

Symbol-based comparison questions involve comparing values or items based on given symbolic relations.

Example

Question: If ‘A * B’ means A is greater than B, and ‘A # B’ means A is less than B, what does ‘5 * 3 # 4’ mean?

Answer: 5 is greater than 3, and 3 is less than 4.

Explanation: The symbols denote the relationships between the numbers.

12. Matrix Arrangement

Matrix arrangement questions involve arranging items in a matrix format based on given conditions.

Example

Question: Arrange the following people by their professions and cities:

• John (Doctor, London)
• Mary (Engineer, New York)
• Steve (Teacher, Sydney)
• Anne (Lawyer, Mumbai)

Answer:

Name	Profession	City
John	Doctor	London
Mary	Engineer	New York
Steve	Teacher	Sydney
Anne	Lawyer	Mumbai

Explanation: The matrix helps to visually organize the information based on the given conditions.