Understanding the prompt and task - Analyzing the decision f...

Learning Outcomes

After reading this article, you will know how to break down LSAT prompts and tasks, identify what the decision-maker is being asked to prioritize, and articulate the specific goals and criteria involved. You will learn to distinguish between instructions, clarify what counts as successful performance, and select relevant information. You will be able to explain, apply, and evaluate decision-making frameworks used in LSAT Logical Reasoning and essay tasks by recognising both stated goals and implicit criteria.

LSAT Syllabus

For LSAT, you are required to understand how prompt wording and decision-making instructions establish the framework for a logical argument. Before revising this topic, focus your attention on:

• identifying what the prompt or question is genuinely asking you to do (decision task recognition)
• determining and explaining the actual goals or objectives set out in the prompt
• extracting, listing, and applying the relevant criteria needed for decision-making or evaluation
• structuring your analysis to address both goals and criteria directly and completely
• demonstrating judgment and prioritisation of information based on the stated framework in a prompt or LSAT question

Test Your Knowledge

Attempt these questions before reading this article. If you find some difficult or cannot remember the answers, remember to look more closely at that area during your revision.

1. What is the primary purpose of identifying decision goals in a prompt?
   1. To summarise the facts
   2. To guide which information and arguments are most relevant
   3. To restate the task in your own words
   4. To list every possible outcome
2. Which of the following is an example of a decision criterion?
   1. "Which choice has the lowest cost?"
   2. "Restate the answer in new language"
   3. "Describe three possible explanations"
   4. "Identify all stakeholders"

3. True or false? You should always apply both the explicitly stated and any implicit criteria present in a prompt to structure a complete answer.

4. What is the difference between a goal and a criterion in LSAT decision tasks?

Introduction

Understanding the LSAT prompt and task is a critical prerequisite to answering legal reasoning and essay questions accurately. Many LSAT questions—a decision-making stimulus, an essay prompt, or a reasoning task—are designed around explicit or implicit frameworks that direct your answer’s structure. Analysing and applying the correct goals and criteria allows you to deliver precise, relevant, and logically sound responses on the exam.

Key Term: decision framework
The structure given by a prompt or question, specifying what the candidate is being asked to decide, prioritise, or determine, including relevant goals and criteria.

Analysing LSAT Prompts: Goals and Criteria

When you encounter an LSAT prompt or essay scenario, the first task is to work out what you are being asked to decide or justify. The LSAT may frame this as a recommendation, choice, evaluation, or deliberation between alternatives. To answer correctly, you must identify two types of information embedded in the prompt: the goal and the criteria.

Recognising the Decision Goal

Every decision prompt has a central goal—what the decision-maker (or you, as the student) is trying to achieve overall. This is usually found in instructions such as "Choose between X and Y, taking into account the following considerations." The goal tells you the main outcome you must justify (for example, “select the best law school for the student’s objectives” or “recommend the most cost-effective solution”).

Key Term: goal
The overall aim or objective that the decision-maker must achieve or justify in response to a prompt.

Identifying and Applying Decision Criteria

After isolating the goal, you must identify the criteria—the specific standards, principles, or tests that the chosen outcome must satisfy. Criteria answer the question: "On what basis will you decide or evaluate?" In LSAT questions, criteria are often directly stated in the prompt (e.g., "You should select the option that best meets BOTH cost and speed") but may also be implied by the context or subject-matter norms.

Key Term: criterion (plural: criteria)
A standard or test against which possible options or answers are evaluated when making a decision or argument.

Key Term: explicit criterion
A standard or test that is directly stated in the LSAT prompt or instructions.

Key Term: implicit criterion
A standard or consideration not directly stated, but reasonably presumed to apply given the context or legal subject matter.

Worked Example 1.1

Prompt:
A student has been offered places at University A and University B. Write an argument for choosing one, considering: (1) career opportunities, (2) financial cost, and (3) preference for urban lifestyle.

What is the goal, and what are the criteria that must be addressed?

Answer:

• The goal is to select and justify the best university choice for the student.
• The criteria are threefold: (1) career opportunities, (2) financial cost, and (3) urban lifestyle preference. A correct answer must explicitly address all three, apply them to the facts, and show why one choice satisfies the full set better.

How to Structure Your Answer Using Decision Frameworks

On the LSAT, you should:

1. Restate the overall goal in your own words, to focus your argument.
2. Extract all the required and suggested criteria from the prompt.
3. Systematically apply each criterion to every realistic option or alternative.
4. Show comparative reasoning—demonstrating not only that your recommendation meets the criteria, but that it does so as well as or better than any alternative.

Revision Tip
Always allocate your time across criteria based on the emphasis in the question. If one criterion is "essential," give it proportionately greater attention.

Reasoning When Criteria Conflict or Compete

Prompts may present criteria that cannot all be satisfied perfectly. In this scenario, you must:

• Explicitly identify the conflict.
• Explain how you prioritise or resolve the conflict (e.g., which criterion is more important given the context or as stated by the prompt).
• Justify and defend your prioritisation.

Worked Example 1.2

Prompt:
You must decide whether to recommend remote or in-person hearings. The prompt states: "Consider cost, access to justice, and public health. Public health is the most important concern at present."

How should you use this information?

Answer:

• The goal is to recommend the better hearing format overall.
• The criteria are: (a) cost, (b) access to justice, (c) public health.
• Given the explicit instruction, you must prioritise public health in your reasoning, even if other factors may support the alternative.

Exam Warning

For LSAT essay or decision questions, failure to address ALL stated criteria—even those not emphasised—will undermine your answer. Missing a required criterion is a frequent cause of incomplete, low-scoring answers.

Importance of Structure and Direct Application

Your response must systematically address each goal and criterion. Where criteria are in tension, make a reasoned choice and justify it. Only by addressing both goals and all applicable criteria can you produce a complete, legally sound LSAT answer.

Key Point Checklist

This article has covered the following key knowledge points:

• The decision framework in an LSAT prompt includes a clear goal and one or more specific criteria.
• The goal is the main result or objective you must achieve or justify.
• Criteria are explicit or implicit standards by which options are evaluated.
• All criteria must be directly addressed and applied for a full answer.
• Where criteria are in conflict, justify any prioritisation as required or as you determine is reasonable.
• Failure to apply all stated criteria is a frequent error on LSAT decision and essay tasks.

Key Terms and Concepts

• decision framework
• goal
• criterion (plural: criteria)
• explicit criterion
• implicit criterion