Logical Reasoning

PT122 · S1 · Q5 Statistician: Two major studies found

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Statistician: Two major studies found no causal link between medical procedure X and disorder Y, but these studies are flawed.

Conclusion

These studies are flawed.

Rephrase: The two studies finding no causal link between X and Y are flawed.

Evidence

One study looked at 1,000 people who had undergone procedure X. The other study looked at 1,100 people who had undergone procedure X. Because disorder Y occurs in only 0.02 percent of the population, many more than 1,100 people would be needed to detect a notable change in the rate of disorder Y.

Evaluate

The statistician's conclusion is presented at the beginning of the argument, introduced with a pivot word "but," indicating a rebuttal of the studies' findings. The word "flawed" signals the opinionated pushback from our author.

This aligns with the two most common patterns in Main Conclusion questions: presenting a conclusion after a pivot and providing a rebuttal to previous claims. It also aligns with the 3rd most common pattern: putting the conclusion in the first sentence.

The subsequent sentences offer evidence regarding the rarity of disorder Y and the need for a much larger sample size to detect any significant effects, thereby supporting the statistician's conclusion that the studies are flawed.

Goal

Find the best available meaning match for *the two studies are unsound.*

5.

Which one of the following most accurately expresses the main conclusion of the statistician's argument?

  1. Contrary to the findings of

    Too Strong

    This answer implies that there is a reason to think procedure X causes disorder Y, which goes beyond what the statistician argues. The argument only claims that the studies are flawed due to sample size issues, not that the studies have claimed something false.

    4% picked this

  2. Correct

    Two studies that discovered no

    Why this is right

    This answer matches the conclusion. It is supported by the discussion of methodological flaws, specifically the insufficient sample size for detecting a causal link given the rarity of disorder Y.

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

    73% picked this

  3. Researchers should conduct more-extensive studies

    Inference-Bait

    This answer suggests conducting further research, which is logical "what is something else the author might believe" kind of idea, but not explicitly stated in the argument, so not a contender for a Main Conclusion answer.

    19% picked this

  4. The two studies cited did

    Contradicted

    The studied did reach a conclusion. They concluded there is no causal link (in either direction). Plus, this isn't the statistician's conclusion. The conclusion is that the studies were unsound.

    2% picked this

  5. Despite the opinions of many

    Out of Scope

    This answer introduces the opinions of medical experts and attempts to establish a lack of causal link, which wasn't directly discussed.

    1% picked this

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