PrepTest 108, Section 2, Question 17
Two hundred randomly selected subjects were asked, "Have(52 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(8 more words not shown)
- AExperiencing a sense(19 more words not shown)
- BThe number of(25 more words not shown)
- CIf the reports(26 more words not shown)
- DAt least some(11 more words not shown)
- EThe tendency of(19 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Forty percent said yes to the more detailed question, but only fourteen percent said yes to the simpler one. Did adding the strange presence change what people remembered—or at least what they reported remembering?
Both groups were randomly selected, and each contained two hundred people. But the people were different, and so were the questions. The first group was asked about waking up seemingly paralyzed with a strange presence in the room. The second was asked only about waking up seemingly paralyzed.
That makes the wording an interesting possible explanation for the difference. Mentioning an accompanying circumstance might prompt someone to recognize an experience that the shorter question didn't bring to mind. We shouldn't turn these reports into proof that a strange presence actually existed, or assume that we know exactly what happened to every participant.
What we’re looking for
The question asks what is most supported. My prediction is about survey wording: how we ask can affect the answers we receive. Keep that separate from a claim about what causes paralysis or which group actually had more of a particular experience.
Working the answers
- A
Nothing establishes that sensing a presence causes the feeling of paralysis. The experiences could be related in some other way, or feeling paralyzed might help produce the sense of a presence. The study compares responses to questions; it doesn't settle the causal direction between the experiences.
- B
We don't have the control group's answer to a question about a strange presence. We only know how many reported waking seemingly paralyzed. Also, reported recollections aren't a direct count of everything people actually experienced. The difference between these survey answers doesn't establish which group had more experiences of a presence.
- C
A no to the first question needn't mean the person never sensed a strange presence. They might have sensed one without feeling paralyzed. The question combines both features. Even if all reports were accurate, the remaining sixty percent could include people who experienced one feature without the other.
- D
These are different people giving answers to different questions. Nobody is shown giving one report and then an incompatible report about the same experience. A difference between group response rates is not, by itself, an inconsistency in anyone's reports.
- ECorrect
Suggesting a circumstance that accompanied an event can sometimes make people more likely to report remembering the event. Here, mentioning a strange presence accompanies a much higher rate of reported recollection of waking seemingly paralyzed.
This is a modest claim about reporting. It doesn't say everyone is influenced, that the extra detail creates a false memory, or that we have proved what caused any individual's experience. It captures the connection between question wording and responses that this comparison supports.
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