How is 'validity' distinguished from 'soundness' in an argument?

Validity and soundness are key concepts in evaluating arguments in critical thinking. Validity pertains to the structure or form of the argument; an argument is considered valid if the conclusion logically follows from the premises, regardless of whether those premises are actually true. This means that if the premises are true, the conclusion must necessarily be true as well.

Soundness, on the other hand, goes a step further. For an argument to be sound, it must not only be valid but also have all true premises. Therefore, a sound argument is both valid in form and also factually correct in its premises.

This distinction between validity focusing on structural reasoning and soundness incorporating both validity and truthfulness is crucial for evaluating arguments. The other options do not capture these definitions accurately, making the correct option the most precise in explaining the difference between validity and soundness in arguments.