Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Easy

PT127 S3 Q8 Explanation

Economist: During a recession

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

TopicsStrengthen

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Stimulus

Economist: During a recession, a company can cut personnel costs either by laying off some employees without reducing the wages of remaining employees or by reducing the wages of all employees without laying off anyone. Both damage morale, but layoffs damage it less, since the aggrieved have, after costs during recessions, they are likely to lay off employees.

What this question is testing

Strengthen

Your task

Find the choice that makes the argument's conclusion more likely to be true.

Common trap

Answers that are consistent with the argument but add no real support, or that strengthen a claim the argument doesn't make.

Winning move

Locate the gap between evidence and conclusion, then pick the choice that closes it.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question
8.

Which one of the following, if true, most strengthens the

Answer choices

  1. Correct87% picked this

    Employee morale is usually the primary concern driving companies' decisions about whether to lay off employees or

    Why this is right

    This makes the morale of the company’s employees more likely to be the deciding factor and thereby more likely that the company will decide to layoff employees during a recession.

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

  2. Out of Scope0% picked this

    In general, companies increase wages only when they are unable to find

    Increasing wages is not relevant to the argument about how to cut personnel costs during a recession.

  3. Out of scope1% picked this

    Some companies will be unable to make a profit during recessions no matter how much

    Whether companies can make a profit during a recession is not relevant to the argument about how to cut personnel costs during a recession.

  4. Too Weak11% picked this

    When companies cut personnel costs during recessions by reducing wages, some

    This is only true for some employees.

  5. Too Weak0% picked this

    Some companies that have laid off employees during recessions have had difficulty finding enough qualified employees

    Although this is a tempting answer as it appears to provide a drawback of the plan to layoff employees, it is too weak to affect the argument since it is only true for some companies.

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