Abstract / Inductive Reasoning
What is tested
These items show a sequence or grid of shapes and ask which comes next. Nothing depends on vocabulary or arithmetic; everything depends on finding rules and applying them consistently. Typical rules: rotation (90° or 45°, clockwise or anti-clockwise), reflection, movement of a dot or line around a shape, number of sides, shading alternation, adding or removing elements, and superposition (combine two figures, cancelling lines that appear twice).
Method
Treat each attribute as a separate column: position, orientation, shading, count, size. Read across the row or down the column and write the pattern for each attribute. Then test every option against all columns - the correct answer satisfies every rule, while distractors usually satisfy only one or two.
Traps
- One-rule thinking. You spot the rotation and stop looking; the shading rule then eliminates your choice.
- Direction errors. Three successive 90° clockwise turns are not the same as 90° anti-clockwise.
- Overfitting. With three examples you can invent many rules; prefer the simplest rule that explains all of them.
- Alternating patterns. Some sequences use one rule for odd steps and another for even steps.
- Answering the wrong question. Some items ask which figure does not belong.
Worked example
A shape rotates 90° clockwise at each step and the number of dots inside rises 1, 2, 3. The fourth figure must be rotated a further 90° clockwise and carry four dots. One option has the right rotation but only three dots: reject it. Only one option satisfies both rules at once.
Rule of thumb: never choose on the strength of one feature; tick off each rule against each option before deciding.