Inductive and Deductive

The other day I was browsing through the net when I came across a statement which read "Indians are usually inductive, and not deductive, in their approach to problem solving."

 

I pondered over the statement for sometime. A few thoughts and questions zipped through my mind:

 

"There are 2 kinds of reasoning: inductive and deductive. But then would these be left brain processes or right brain processes? Would deductive be a left brained process and inductive a right brained process? What's the difference between these two?"

 

The dictionary says that

"Deductive  reasoning is a logical process in which a conclusion drawn from a set of premises contains no more information than the premises taken collectively. All dogs are animals; this is a dog; therefore, this is an animal"

 

"Inductive  reasoning is a logical process in which a conclusion is proposed that contains more information than the observations or experience on which it is based. Every crow ever seen was black; all crows are black."

 

Given these definitions, I feel that being inductive would involve the ability to see patterns – figuring out the whole. To make sense of a situation one figures out the whole (in contrast to figuring out the individual components). Hence being inductive would involve using right side of the brain.

 

What about the natural preference of Indians? What do our normal day to day experiences tell us? An inductive culture should veer towards "To understand him, it is important for me to understand the context s/he is coming from".

 

The usual conversation starters for Indians are aimed towards understanding the personal, social, and historical context a person is coming from. It is important for us to know this to understand the person and become comfortable with him.

 

I feel we are more of an inductive than deductive culture.

 

Maybe this is the reason why the Gestalt principle – the whole is greater than the sum of its parts – appeals to me.

 

But then Gestalt principle has its origins in Germany. What about the Germans then? Are they more inductive than deductive too?

 

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Sourav