Interview Question

[thomaspayne]

What is the probability of choosing the correct answer at random from the options below.

a) 1/4
b) 1/2
c) 1
d) 1/4

[bednobs]

i in 3?*

*other answers may be available

[Sparkles62]

I would go for one in three aswell.

[New Judge]

It's one in four, or 25% or .25.

There are four possible answers and yu have one choice, so there is a one in four chance of you being correct.

[rockyracoon]

a) or d)

[factor-fiction]

I am assuming there was a question (e.g. what fraction of this shape is shaded?).

Ignoring the letters there are three possible numerical answers: 1, ½ and ¼. Only one of them can be right.
I'm not sure we can read anything into the value ¼ being listed twice. The question setter may just have been feeling mischievous. That suggests the chance of guessing the right numerical answer is 1 in 3.

But with multiple choice questions which have 4 choices the answer has to be a or b or c or d. You just tick the letter. So it's a 1 in 4 chance as NewJudge says.

This would be different though if the answer was ¼ and the examiner allowed a and d as the correct answer.

[Prudie]

But if the correct answer is 1/4 then you have a 2 out of 4 or 50% chance of being right, it depends on what the right answer is.

[factor-fiction]

Exactly Prudie. The answer has to be 'it depends'

It depends on whether the answer was ½, ¼, or 1

[Prudie]

Exactly factor so is this one of these weird philosophy questions like 'is this a question? discuss'