PrepTest 135, Section 4, Question 18
Hospitals, universities, labor unions, and other institutions may(29 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(8 more words not shown)
- AWhat is true(12 more words not shown)
- BAn organization can(10 more words not shown)
- CPeople often claim(9 more words not shown)
- DMany social institutions(9 more words not shown)
- EOften an instrument(14 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
A doctor might want a higher salary and a promotion, yet pursue those goals by treating patients well. The motive could be selfish while the hospital still succeeds at helping the public. We don't have to pretend the doctor secretly has a public-spirited motive to understand how the two can fit together.
What we’re looking for
That's the distinction the passage illustrates: the institution's purpose and success needn't mirror the personal motives of each employee. I might initially put it as 'selfish motives can coexist with beneficial results.' For the generalization question, look for a statement that captures this difference between the organization and the people who make it up.
Working the answers
- A
This compares some organizations with other organizations. The passage instead contrasts organizations with their own staff members. It doesn't use hospitals, universities, and unions to show that one kind of institution differs from another.
- BCorrect
The organization can have a public purpose even though its members act only for selfish reasons. That gives the organization a characteristic its members don't all share. We aren't required to say the employees are altruistic just because their combined work advances the institution's public mission.
- C
The passage doesn't say staff members claim to be altruistic. They could be perfectly honest about wanting money or advancement. We're comparing their motives with the organization's public purpose, not comparing their real motives with what they pretend to believe.
- D
We aren't told what the founders intended or whether the organization's effects surprise them. The founders could have intended exactly the public benefit the organization achieves. The contrast concerns the current staff members' selfish motives.
- E
The organization isn't described as discovering a second use for itself. A hospital could carry out the same patient-care mission it was created for while its employees pursue personal interests. Different motives within one institution aren't two successive purposes for an instrument.
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