PrepTest 149, Section 3, Question 17
When a chain of service stations began applying(55 more words not shown)
Which one of the following(9 more words not shown)
- APeople usually adopt(11 more words not shown)
- BPeople's perceptions of(14 more words not shown)
- CPeople usually become(5 more words not shown)
- DPeople often change(13 more words not shown)
- EPeople's evaluations of(17 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
An extra charge feels different from a discount—even when the final bill is the same.
Imagine a fuel purchase that originally costs $10 in cash or $10.25 by card. Under the new presentation, the purchase costs $10.25, with a 25-cent discount for cash. Cash customers still pay $10; card customers still pay $10.25. These are illustrative transaction totals, but they show what the compensating increase and equal discount accomplish.
I can see why customers might dislike an added charge appearing when they choose a payment method. The new policy presents cash as earning a benefit instead. The described improvement in their reaction doesn't require anyone to save money.
What we’re looking for
For the generalization, I'd look for the effect of presentation on people's evaluations. The prices aren't the only thing that matters to the reaction; how the policy describes those prices can matter too.
Working the answers
- A
One response to a pricing policy doesn't show how people usually form beliefs. We also aren't told how carefully these customers examined evidence. The example shows that two presentations produce different reactions, not a general failure to assess reasons for beliefs.
- B
Customers aren't described as gaining a personal financial benefit from the switch. The price increase compensates for removing the surcharge, and the cash discount preserves the other price. Nor do we know their precise judgments about fairness; anger could reflect a different concern. B doesn't capture the contrast between equivalent charges presented differently.
- C
The customers react emotionally here, but one fuel-pricing example doesn't establish that people usually become emotional about financial matters generally. Mortgages, saving, salaries, and other financial issues aren't examined. The narrower presentation lesson is better supported.
- D
Their evaluation changes, so we shouldn't dismiss this by pretending no change in reaction occurred. But we're not told that the issue makes no significant difference to their lives, or that people often change their minds about such issues. D leaves out the key comparison: a change in presentation with equivalent payment amounts.
- ECorrect
The payment difference is preserved, yet the customers are happier when it is described as a cash discount instead of a card surcharge. That illustrates how presentation can matter more to an evaluation than an unchanged financial result. 'Sometimes' fits the example; we don't need to claim people always overlook final prices or always prefer discounts.
More Must Be True questions
Learn the LSAT our way
Our platform drills Must Be True questions at your level and adjusts as you improve.