12 Days of Christmas GMAT Competition - Day 1: When regulations that l

Manhattan Prep Official Explanation

First Glance: Differences in the answer choices provide clues about what a problem might be testing. Before reading the sentence, glance at the beginning of the underline and down the beginning (just the beginning!) of the five answer choices to look for one early clue as to what this sentence is testing.

The answer choices alternate between they advertise and that they advertise, which indicates a possible issue with Structure or Modifiers. The long underline and long sentence are also good indicators to pay close attention to Structure.

Issues:
(1) Modifiers/Meaning
Answer choices (A) and (E) both put the modifier in their commercials right after the noun businesses. This seems to imply that the businesses are located in their own commercials. Logically, the lying is taking place in the commercials. Eliminate answers (A) and (E) for illogical meaning.

You might be tempted to eliminate answer (C) for a similar reason. However, since the modifier in their commercials is set off by commas, the modifier is an adverb, describing the entire action (how the businesses are lying), not where the businesses are. This is an unusual structure, but it is correct, so don’t eliminate (C).

(2) Structure/Modifiers/Meaning
The primary split between answers (B), (C), and (D) is about how the consumers become suspicious (the split between in order to and so as to is a red herring, by the way—either is correct).

Consumers …

(A) become suspicious of businesses lying … more frequently
(B) become suspicious of businesses that lie … more frequently
(C) become suspicious that businesses … are lying more frequently
(D) become suspicious of businesses lying … more frequently
(E) tend to suspect that businesses … will lie more frequently

None of these is grammatically incorrect, so consider meaning. Answers (A), (B), and (D) lay out the specific kinds of businesses that arouse suspicion in consumers: those that lie or are lying more frequently. Answers (C) and (E), by contrast, state that consumers are suspicious that businesses might be lying more frequently.

After the underline, the sentence states that the phenomenon being discussed occurs even when the amount of dishonesty does not increase—that is, even when the businesses are not, in fact, lying more than they used to. Answers (A), (B), and (D), then, are illogical, since they imply that lying has definitively increased, not just that customers suspect it might increase. Eliminate answers (A), (B), and (D) for illogical meaning.

The Correct Answer: Answer (C) correctly details a logical fear that consumers have: that businesses in general might start lying more in commercials because certain advertising regulations have been lifted. Answer (C) also corrects the error in the original sentence regarding the modifier businesses in their commercials by setting the modifier between commas, changing it from a noun modifier to an adverbial modifier.

Red Herring Alert! The opening split between they advertise and that they advertise is a red herring. Both options are acceptable ways to modify the word before the underline, products.