Distinguishingbetweenfactandopinion
Beingabletodiscernthedifferencesbetweenfactandopinionwillhelpyourevaluationofthe
reliabilityandusefulnessoftextsyouencounter.
Criticalthinkingisthebestpossiblewayofdeterminingwhichstatementsarefactandwhich
statementsareopinion.
Itmayseematfirstthatthedifferencesareeasytoseehowever,noteverythingisasblackand
whiteasitfirstseems.
What is a
A fact is something which can be verified with evidence, for
example, the river which flows through London is called the Thames.
What is an
An opinion is based on belief and viewpoint. Opinions are often personal
interpretations and cannot be verified with evidence. For example,
'summer evenings are nicer than winter evenings'. Opinions are often
(though not always) preceded with terms such as 'I think', or with
adjectives, comparatives and superlatives, such as, 'good', 'better', 'the
best'.
Quite often, writers use opinions and fact interchangably.
Critical thinking skills can help us, the reader, distinguish facts from opinions quickly and easily.
Fact or opinion
Has the writer used (subjective) adjectives?
no
Yes No
Opinion
Is there any evidence?
yes
fact
opinion
Fact
Have
Is the evidence reliable?
Remember: these are not
hard and fast rules some
facts will use the words
'seem' and some opinions
will not use adjectives, or
'hedged' language.
no
opinion
yes
fact
Facts
The earth is round.
Summer follows spring.
The 2010 world cup took place in South Africa.
The British Winter of 2009/2010 was the coldest for 30 years.
Opinion
I think that rock music is awful.
The legal age for drinking should be lowered to 16.
London is the best city in the world.
Today seems hotter than yesterday
Do you remember that the first page of this .pdf said...
"Itmayseematfirstthatthedifferencesareeasytoseehowever,not
everythingisasblackandwhiteasitfirstseems"
Indeed, opinions and facts are not always
easily identifiable and separable.
How you would classify the following statements: fact or opinion?
YouarestudyingataUniversity.
YouarestudyingatagoodUniversity.
ItisoneofthebestinLondon.
QueenMaryisabetterUniversitythanBrunelandRoehampton.
WorldMarcheisthebestcafeontheMileEndcampus.
Youarestudyingat
aUniversity.
Youarereadingmaterialwhichisonly
availableonQueenMary'sintranet
site,thereforeyoumustbeastudent
atQueenMary.Thisstatementisa
fact.
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Wefirstneedtoqualifytheterm'good'beforewecanmakeajudgementaboutwhether
thisisfactoropinion.'Good'isaverysubjectivetermwhichcouldbeinterpretedinmany
differentways.Forexample,theresearchratingsareveryhigh,theUniversityoffersa
widerangeofsubjectsanddisciplines,theUniversityismulticultural,itisintheeastend
ofLondon,oritfitstheneedsofthepersonwhomadethestatement.
Youarestudying
atagood
University.
Thiscouldbeeitherfact,or
opinion,orpossiblyeven
both.Itdependsonwhether
thestatementisbasedon
evidence,orifitisan
unsupportedidea.Thatis,
youwouldneedleague
tablestoverifythisclaim.
Whilstthismayatfirstseemtobeafactualstatement,
(giventhatweallknowQueenMaryisawellrespected
andhighachievingUniversity),thiscouldbeanopinion.
Ifevidencehadnotbeenreferredtobeforethe
statementwasmade,thiswouldbeanopinion.
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ItisoneofthebestinLondon
Thiscouldbeeitherfact,oropinion,orpossiblyevenboth.Itdependsonwhetherthe
statementisbasedonevidence,orifitisanunsupportedideabasedonbelief.You
wouldneedstatisticsonalltheUniversitiesinLondontoverifythisclaimandmakeita
fact.Thiswouldnotbedifficulttodo.
12
QueenMaryisabetterUniversitythanBrunelandRoehampton
Thiscouldbeeitherfact,oropinion,or
possiblyevenboth.Itdependsonwhether
thestatementisbasedonevidence,orifitis
anunsupportedideabasedonaviewpointor
belief.Youwouldneedstatisticsonall3
Universitiestoverifythisclaim.
Youwouldalsoneedto
qualifywhichareasyou
arereferringto.Areyou
talkingaboutthe
disciplines,thegrounds,
thecatering?
13
WorldMarcheisthebestcafeontheMile
Endcampus
Whilstatfirstthisappearstobean
opinion(becauseitusesthe
superlative'best'),itcouldbeafact.
Youwouldneedtoqualifywhatyou
meanby'best'andthenyouwould
needtoeitherverifythisstatement
withstatisticsorwithstudentopinion.
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It is also important to remember...
15
...that facts can be influenced by opinion and
bias, especially in the media and in (some)
research projects (especially qualitative
research). That is, even facts presented as facts,
are not always completely objective and 'sacred'
as once claimed (Scott, C.P. cited in Edwards, D
& D. Cromwell (2009).
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17
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Whilst this is quite a philosophical argument, it is good to be
aware that bias can influence even the most objective pieces
of information.
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