Logical Reasoning

PT151 · S3 · Q7 If rational-choice theory is correct

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If rational-choice theory is correct, then people act only in ways that they expect will benefit themselves.

Evidence

If rational-choice theory is correct, then people act only in ways that they expect will benefit themselves.

RCT correct → expect benefit self

Plenty of examples exist of people acting in ways that result in no personal benefit whatsoever.

~benefit self

Conclusion

Rational-choice theory cannot be correct.

~RCT correct

Evaluate

It seems like we can get from the second premise to the conclusion using the contrapositive of the first premise:

~benefit self → ~RCT correct

But wait! That's not actually the correct contrapositive. The first premise is about people acting in ways that they expect to benefit from, not ways that they actually benefit from.

The second premise is about people acting in ways that they actually do not benefit from.

This argument is assuming that, if someone acts in a way that they do not benefit from, they are acting in a way that they did not expect to benefit from.

~benefit self → ~expect benefit self

If you're still not entirely clear about the difference here, think about this: imagine that I invest my life savings in some new cryptocurrency that my ex-girlfriend's cousin's best friend recommends. I might do this because I expect to benefit from the investment. But expecting to benefit is a completely different issue from me actually benefitting from the investment or not.

Goal

The correct answer is likely to point out this potential difference between an action that is expected to produce a result and an action that does or does not actually produce that result.

7.

The argument above is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it

  1. assumes as a premise the

    Circular Reasoning

    The "contention that this argument purports to establish" is the conclusion that rational-choice theory cannot be correct. The argument is not also assuming this as a premise.

    2% picked this

  2. concludes that a theory is

    Bad Evidence Match

    The argument concludes that rational-choice theory is incorrect. But it doesn't state that the evidence for rational-choice theory is merely hypothetical.

    2% picked this

  3. takes for granted that people

    Negation

    benefit self ? expect benefit self This is the negation of the assumption that the argument makes.

    4% picked this

  4. presumes, without justification, that examples

    Irrelevant Comparison

    The evidence states that people sometimes act in ways that are not personally beneficial. The argument doesn't depend on any assumption that there are more examples of this than examples of people acting in ways that are personally beneficial.

    5% picked this

  5. Correct

    fails to consider that people

    Why this is right

    "Fails to consider" means this answer describes something that should weaken the argument. This answer negates the assumption that, if a person's action does not benefit them, they were not expecting the action to benefit them. In other words, the argument assumes "if not X then not Y." This answer choice is saying, "if not X, Y might still be true."

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

    87% picked this

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