Logical Reasoning

PT110 · S2 · Q13 Essayist: One of the claims

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Essayist: One of the claims of laissez-faire economics is that increasing the minimum wage reduces the total number of minimum- wage jobs available.

Conclusion

Laissez-faire economics is not entirely accurate.

Evidence

One claim of laissez-faire economics is that raising the minimum wage reduces minimum-wage jobs. But a study found that fast-food restaurants kept roughly the same number of minimum-wage employees after a minimum-wage increase.

Evaluate

The argument generalizes from one slice of the labor market — fast-food restaurants in the study — to the broader claim of laissez-faire economics, which is about minimum-wage jobs in general. That step only works if those fast-food restaurants are a fair stand-in for the broader minimum-wage job market. If they aren't representative, the study doesn't actually contradict the laissez-faire claim.

Goal

The correct answer should fill that gap — the studied fast-food restaurants must be representative of the wider minimum-wage labor market. Negation test: if the studied restaurants are not representative, the argument falls apart.

13.

The essayist's argument depends on assuming which one of the following?

  1. If laissez-faire economics makes an

    Too Strong

    The argument's conclusion is just that laissez-faire economics is "not entirely accurate" — meaning at least one of its claims is wrong. The argument doesn't need to assume that all of laissez-faire's doctrines collapse from a single mistake. Negation test: even if laissez-faire has plenty of accurate doctrines, finding one inaccurate prediction still makes it "not entirely accurate." The argument survives. Not necessary.

    7% picked this

  2. Correct

    Minimum-wage job availability at fast-food

    Why this is right

    This fills the gap. The essayist is using a fast-food study to disprove a general claim about minimum-wage jobs. That move only works if fast-food job behavior fairly represents minimum-wage job behavior overall. Negation test: suppose the fast-food restaurants in the study were not representative. Then their employment patterns tell us nothing about minimum-wage jobs in general — and the laissez-faire claim about the broader market could still be accurate. The argument falls apart, which confirms this is a necessary assumption.

    Skill tested: Necessary Assumption · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

    80% picked this

  3. No study has ever found

    Too Strong

    This says no study has ever found a minimum-wage employee decrease following a wage hike. The essayist's argument doesn't need that. The essayist only needs one piece of evidence to undermine a universal-sounding laissez-faire claim. Negation test: even if some other study did find a decrease, this study still found no decrease — and that single counterexample is enough to make the prediction "not entirely accurate." Not necessary.

    2% picked this

  4. The fast-food restaurants included in

    Out of Scope

    The argument is about minimum-wage employment levels, not about average wages. Whether the fast-food restaurants raised their average pay doesn't affect the comparison the essayist is making (number of minimum-wage employees before and after the minimum-wage hike). Negation test: even if average wages rose, the essayist's observation about employment levels stands. Not necessary.

    5% picked this

  5. The national unemployment rate did

    Out of Scope

    The laissez-faire prediction at issue is specifically about minimum-wage jobs, not the national unemployment rate. Whether overall unemployment rose is a different metric. Negation test: even if national unemployment went up, the studied fast-food restaurants still kept their minimum-wage employees, which is the data point the essayist relies on. Not necessary.

    5% picked this

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