Logical Reasoning

PT130 · S1 · Q2 Psychologist: The best way

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Psychologist: The best way to recall a certain word or name that one is having trouble remembering is to occupy one's mind with other things, since often the more we strive to remember a certain word or name that we can't think of, the less likely it becomes that the word will come to mind.

Conclusion

The best way to remember something you can't quite remember is to focus on something else.

Evidence

Often, the more we try to remember the thing that's eluding us, the less likely we'll actually succeed at remembering it.

Evaluation

We need a generic principle, not related to recall/memory, that could apply to an argument on a different topic. The general moral to this story is that we have a problem, and we're being advised to distract ourselves with something else, because the more we focus on the problem, the less likely it is we'll find our solution.

Goal

Look for an answer recommending that we temporarily distract ourselves from the thing we're trying to accomplish, because the more we focus on it, the less likely it is we'll succeed.

2.

The principle that underlies the psychologist's argument underlies which one of the following arguments?

  1. Often, the best way to

    Bad Premise Match

    The conclusion seems usable, but we would need the premise to sound more like, "the more you strive to achieve happiness through wealth and fame, the less likely you are to do so".

    1% picked this

  2. The best way to succeed

    Weak Conclusion Match

    The advice here isn't to temporarily abandon the problem you're trying to solve (like it was in the original). Instead, the advice is to tackle the problem in bite-sized pieces. Focus on the next small thing rather than being overwhelmed by the whole. That's not a great match for the original, which was "The more you try to force a solution, the less likely it'll come, so distract yourself and maybe the solution will make itself apparent."

    5% picked this

  3. The best way to overcome

    Bad Conclusion Match

    I wouldn't keep reading past this conclusion. This advice is saying, "When you mess up, pretend you didn't." That's a bad match for the original, which was "When you can't find a solution to your problem, do something else instead."

    3% picked this

  4. Correct

    The best way to fall

    Why this is right

    This replicates the idea of, "The best way to solve your problem is to do something else, because the more you focus on your problem, the less likely you'll be to succeed"

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

    90% picked this

  5. The best way to cope

    Bad Premise Match

    The conclusion could potentially match, as a "the best way to deal with your problem is to do something else", but the premise would need to say something like, "The more you focus on your own grief, the less likely you are cope better with it". This premise is saying, "if you look at someone who's REALLY screwed, you'll feel better by comparison."

    1% picked this

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