PrepTest 124, Section 3, Question 11
A recent epidemiological study found that businesspeople who(65 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(8 more words not shown)
- AMost international travel(11 more words not shown)
- BSome businesspeople who(13 more words not shown)
- CBusinesspeople who already(23 more words not shown)
- DExperiencing dramatic changes(21 more words not shown)
- ESome businesspeople who(13 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
My first thought is jet lag. If someone keeps changing time zones, I can see why sleeping might become difficult.
The author offers a related but more specific explanation: stresses from changes in climate, disrupted routines, and unfamiliar cultures. Disrupted routines might include changes to a sleep schedule. Still, the study hasn't separated these possibilities or shown which feature of international travel is responsible.
What if the people who travel have especially demanding jobs? Their work stress could affect their sleep whether they were on the road or at home. The comparison is between businesspeople who travel and those who don't, but that doesn't guarantee the groups differ only in travel-related stress.
What we’re looking for
We're strengthening the argument, so we want more reason to attribute the insomnia to the stresses the author identifies. Removing a competing explanation would help. We don't have to show the conclusion is certain; making this account more credible than it was is enough.
Working the answers
- A
Sharing a border doesn't tell us what stresses these travelers experience or what causes their insomnia. Neighboring countries can still involve different climates, cultures, and routines. A doesn't establish that any relevant source of sleep problems has been removed.
- B
Enjoying a different climate or culture doesn't establish that it causes insomnia. If anything, this raises a question about how stressful those experiences are for these particular people. But it gives us no support for the author's causal explanation of the overall pattern.
- CCorrect
This addresses a possibility I hadn't predicted: maybe people who already have insomnia are more likely to take international assignments.
Imagine an employer offering travel opportunities and existing insomniacs disproportionately volunteering. The traveling group could then have more insomnia before the travel did anything to them. C says they are no more likely to accept those assignments, which removes that particular selection problem. It doesn't eliminate every alternative, including job stress, but it strengthens the argument by blocking one explanation of the association.
- D
A possible benefit to some people with insomnia doesn't support the claim that these experiences cause insomnia. Those are different claims. Even if travel helped some existing sufferers, we'd still need evidence that the listed stresses explain the higher rate among international travelers.
- E
These people have sleep-related ailments after they stop traveling, but when did the problems start, and what caused them? The answer doesn't say. Their difficulties could have persisted from travel or arisen for unrelated reasons. Merely reporting problems among some former travelers doesn't tie those problems to the proposed stresses.
More Strengthen questions
Learn the LSAT our way
Our platform drills Strengthen questions at your level and adjusts as you improve.