Logical Reasoning

PT126 · S3 · Q3 Psychiatrist: Breaking any habit is difficult

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Psychiatrist: Breaking any habit is difficult, especially when it involves an addictive substance.

Conclusion

People who quit smoking cigarettes are more likely motivated by social pressure than by health concerns.

Evidence

People who quit an addictive habit are more likely motivated by immediate concerns than by long-term ones. Social pressure is an immediate concern, and _______ .

Evaluation

We just need to complete the comparison between social pressure and health concerns. The author says that “immediate > long-term”, says “social pressure > health concerns”, and says “Social pressure = immediate”.

Goal

The author seems to be thinking that, “Health concerns = long-term”.

3.

The conclusion of the psychiatrist's argument is most strongly supported if which one of the following completes the argument?

  1. a habit that involves an

    Out of Scope: “health threat”

    The author isn’t trying to compare the health threat of addictive vs. nonaddictive substances. The author is trying to support the idea that people who break an addictive habit like cigarettes are more likely responding to social concerns vs. health concerns.

    2% picked this

  2. Correct

    for most people who successfully

    Why this is right

    This is what we were predicting. If social pressure is immediate, and health concerns are long-term, then by the rule given that “habit-breakers more often motivated by immediate than by long-term”, we can support the author’s conclusion that “people who break their cigarette habit are probably motivated more by social pressure than by health concern”.

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

    87% picked this

  3. some courses of action that

    Opposite

    This sounds like it’s trying to say a weakly worded necessary assumption of the author, but in fact the author is probably thinking that quitting smoking would both relieve social pressure (which is anti-smoking) while also ameliorating, not exacerbating, health concerns.

    4% picked this

  4. most people who succeed in

    Trap

    Unclear Impact / Out of Scope: “only after several attempts” Does knowing that they kick the habit only after several attempts argue more in favor of social pressure than health concerns? We don’t have any common sense way to make this answer relevant to the conclusion’s head-to-head battle between social pressure and health concerns.

    1% picked this

  5. everyone who succeeds in quitting

    Unclear Impact

    The author doesn’t these two forms of pressure to be the only possible motivations for quitting. I could argue that “people who vacation in Hawaii more likely got their by airplane than by boat”, without needing to believe that “everyone who gets to Hawaii took an airplane or a boat”. If we say that all smokers quit from social pressure or health concerns, it doesn’t strengthen the author’s conclusion that it’s more likely the first one than the second one. It just has no impact on which of those two possible motivations is the more likely one.

    6% picked this

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