PrepTest 110, Section 3, Question 1
If a doctor gives a patient only a(25 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(7 more words not shown)
- APeople are especially(16 more words not shown)
- BPeople dislike calculating(23 more words not shown)
- CThe tendency people(18 more words not shown)
- DMost people are(18 more words not shown)
- EIn getting good(27 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
Chocolate or vanilla? That's a fairly simple decision. Give me a hundred flavors, and I may spend so long comparing them that I never pick one.
That helps me understand the doctor's situation. A short list of possible changes gives the patient a manageable decision. A long list of diets, exercise plans, and other options could leave the patient wondering where to start. The advice could be perfectly understandable, yet choosing what to do could still be difficult.
You can picture the same problem with a website that offers lots of different signup plans. Someone interested in joining might get stuck comparing the plans and leave without signing up. Adding options doesn't always get people to take action.
What we’re looking for
The question asks for the general principle illustrated by the doctor's advice. Keep the two parts connected: more options for changing your behavior, less likelihood of actually making a change. We want that relationship, not a new explanation of why it happens.
Working the answers
- A
Confusion could help explain why someone ignores advice, but the passage doesn't say the patients are confused. They could understand every option and still have trouble choosing one. A replaces the number of options with a possible consequence of having many options. We want the principle the stated comparison actually illustrates.
- B
This is about comparing the benefits of different choices. The passage doesn't tell us whether the patients can see clear differences or whether they dislike calculating which option is best. It compares how often they follow advice when offered a few options versus many options.
- CCorrect
The two things move in opposite directions: as the number of options increases, the tendency to change behavior decreases. That's the general relationship illustrated by the patients. Giving them more ways to make a change makes them less likely to follow through.
- D
We aren't told whether the patients can imagine what will happen if they ignore the advice. A patient could clearly understand those consequences and still struggle to choose among many options. D doesn't capture the comparison between a short list and a long list.
- E
Even if fewer options made the advice clearer, where did the comparison with diagnostic accuracy come from? We have no information about the relative importance of clear instructions and an accurate diagnosis. E adds that comparison while leaving out the number of options.
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