Self-study
Scientist: Support My research indicates that children who engage in impulsive behavior similar to adult thrill-seeking behavior are twice as likely as other children to have a gene variant that increases sensitivity to dopamine. ████ █████ █ ████████ ████ █████ ██ █ ██████ ████████████ ███████ ████ ████ ███████ ███ ██ ███████████ ██████ ██████████████ █████████
Summarize Argument: Phenomenon-Hypothesis
The author concludes that a certain gene variant causes an inclination toward thrill-seeking behavior. This is based on the fact that the author’s research indicates that children who engage in impulsive behavior similar to adult thrill-seeking behavior are twice as likely as other children to have that gene variant.
Notable Assumptions
The author assumes that a correlation between the gene variant and impulsive behavior proves a causal relationship. The author also assumes that the cause of impulsive behavior in children also causes adult thrill-seeking behavior.
20.
Which one of the following, ██ █████ ████ █████ ████ ████████ ███ ███████████ █████████
a
Many impulsive adults ███ ███ █████████ █████████ ██ █████████
The author never suggested every adult has the gene variant. So, the fact many impulsive adults aren’t unusually sensitive (and therefore might not have the gene variant) doesn’t undermine the author’s reasoning.
Illusory inconsistency
Illusory inconsistency
Answer is attractive because it seems to (but doesn't actually) contradict the premises or conclusion.
b
It is not ████████ ██ ████████ ███████████ █████████ ████████ ████ █████ █████████
This shows that the alleged correlation shown by the author’s research doesn’t reliably tell us about impulsive behavior. If we can’t be sure that the author’s research identified impulsive behavior, that reduces the support provided by the research for a causal relationship.
Alternate explanation
Alternate explanation
Weaken: Introduce or support an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
Strengthen: Helps to eliminate an alternate explanation for a phenomenon.
c
Children are often █████████ ██ ██████ ██ ████████ ██ ██████████████ ████████ ██████ ███████ ████ ███ ████████████
The argument is about alleged impulsive behavior in children and adult thrill-seeking behavior. Whether children’s behavior is called thrill-seeking doesn’t affect the potential cause of impulsive behavior or adult thrill-seeking behavior.
d
Many people exhibit ██████████ ██████████ ██ ██████ ████ ████ ███ ███ ███████ ██ █████████
The author never suggested that every child with impulsive behavior grows up to exhibit adult thrill-seeking behavior. So, even if many adults end up not impulsive and not thrill-seeking, that doesn’t undermine the underlying correlation the author observed.
Illusory inconsistency
Illusory inconsistency
Answer is attractive because it seems to (but doesn't actually) contradict the premises or conclusion.
e
The gene variant ███████ ██ ███ █████████ ██ ██████████ ████ █████ █████ ██ ████████ ██ ████████ ██ ██████████████ █████████
This suggests the gene variant might cause other types of behavior in addition to thrill-seeking behavior. But it doesn’t suggest the gene variant might not cause thrill-seeking behavior. (E) could have weakened if the thrill-seeking was correlated with a different gene.
Failed alternate explanation
Failed alternate explanation
Weaken Qs: Answers that try to introduce an alternate explanation, but fall short, or try to explain a different phenomenon.
Strengthen Qs: Answers that try to eliminate an alternate explanation, but fall short, or try to eliminate an explanation for a different phenomenon.