LSAT 111 – Section 1 – Question 09

LSAT 111 - Section 1 - Question 09

October 2001

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Question
QuickView		 Type Tags Answer
Choices		 Curve Question
Difficulty		 Psg/Game/S
Difficulty		 Explanation
PT111 S1 Q09
+LR
Argument part +AP
Causal Reasoning +CausR
A
2%
150
B
7%
158
C
2%
160
D
2%
156
E
88%
165
135
145
154
 +Medium 147.471 +SubsectionMedium

Researcher: The rate of psychological problems is higher among children of divorced parents than among other children. But it would be a mistake to conclude that these problems are caused by the difficulty the children have adjusting to divorce. It is just as reasonable to infer that certain behaviors that increase the likelihood of divorce—hostility, distrust, lack of empathy—are learned by children from their parents, and that it is these learned behaviors, rather than the difficulty of adjusting to divorce, that cause the children’s psychological problems.

Summarize Argument: Counter-Position
The researcher argues that the psychological problems of children of divorced parents may not be caused by the children’s difficulty adjusting to their parents’ divorce. Instead, the researcher proposes an alternative explanation: the children learn divorce-related bad behavior from their parents. This bad behavior could then be the cause of the children’s problems. By offering an alternative explanation, the researcher supports the conclusion that children’s psychological problems may not be caused by difficulty adjusting.

Identify Argument Part
The assertion that children of divorced parents have a higher rate of psychological problems is given as a known phenomenon that the researcher explains through learned behavior rather than through difficulty adjusting to divorce.

A
It is the conclusion of the argument.
The argument’s conclusion is that children’s problems aren’t necessarily caused by difficulty adjusting. The assertion that children of divorced parents have more problems is just given as a fact; it isn’t supported by anything, so can’t be a conclusion.
B
It is the claim that the argument tries to refute.
The researcher accepts that children of divorced parents have more problems. The argument is instead trying to refute the idea that the problems are caused by difficulty adjusting to the divorce.
C
It is offered as evidence for the claim that divorce is harmful to the children of the divorcing parents.
The researcher never claims that divorce is harmful to children. If anything, the argument implies that problems are caused by the parents’ pre-divorce behavior, not the divorce itself.
D
It is offered as evidence for the claim that certain behaviors are often responsible for divorce.
The claim that certain behaviors can lead to divorce is presented as a fact without any support. Also, the claim about children of divorced parents having psychological problems doesn’t support any other claim in the argument: it’s context.
E
It is cited as an established finding for which the argument proposes an explanation.
This is the role played by the claim that children of divorced parents have more psychological problems. It’s taken as a fact, and the researcher explains it with learned behavior.

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