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505-555 (Easy)|   Resolve Paradox|                        
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A study compared a sample of Swedish people older than 75 who needed 21 Jul 2021, 04:00
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A. Out of the scope,since the passage is talking about the study for adult and not children.

B. If more Swedish people live in rural areas and receiving sparse formal assistance, than the findings of the study conducted is incorrect (as per the study Swedish people receive more formal assistance)

C. Local structure implementation is different (this can go both ways it may be better in Sweden or Israel no clarity on this).

D. If the life expectancy of the person living in Israel is higher, than it require more assistance both in terms of formal and informal.

E. If people are living with their Children they require less of formal assistance,as they get more of informal assistance from their family and friends.

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A study compared a sample of Swedish people older than 75 who needed 06 Sep 2021, 16:01
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GMATNinja
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It requires an additional assumption that because of the differences in structure, Sweden receives more formal assistance. Otherwise, it does not signify whether the level of assistance is the same or not.
Look at the portion of your response in bold: without adding any assumptions to the answer choice, you can't determine whether the elderly in Sweden receive more formal care than the elderly in Israel. Now, we know that they do (because it is stated in the passage), but we need an answer choice that shows why they receive more care. If an answer choice does not provide that missing link, then it cannot be the right answer. You need something that specifically addresses the discrepancy.

Let's compare the above explanation of (C) to the correct answer, (E):

Quote:
E. In Israel, people older than 75 tend to live with their children, whereas in Sweden people of that age tend to live alone.
This answer specifies what is different about each group: the elderly in Israel tend to live with their children, while the elderly in Sweden tend to live alone. Using the the passage's definition of informal assistance ("provided by family and friends"), we can now conclude that the elderly in Israel receive more informal care, and thus would require less formal care.

The main difference between (C) and (E) is that (E) provides specific justification for the finding (that the Swedish use more formal care), while (C) only opens the possibility that there is a difference in the two programs, without providing information that actually explains the fact that the Swedish population receives more formal assistance.

As far as tips go: this really isn't sexy or exciting, but doing well on CR mostly boils down to reading the question and passage with precision. As you go through the answer choices, remind yourself that you are looking for an explanation that fills in the information gap and addresses the actual discrepancy, EXACTLY as it's phrased in the passage.

I hope this helps!
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VERY VALID PIECE OF ADVICE! Thanks GMATNinja
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A study compared a sample of Swedish people older than 75 who needed 21 Nov 2024, 20:46
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Arro44
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A. A companion study found that among children needing special in-home care, the amount of formal assistance they received was roughly the same in Sweden as in Israel. - irrelevant.

B. More Swedish than Israeli people older than 75 live in rural areas where formal assistance services are sparse or nonexistent. - opposite of what we are looking for.

C. Although in both Sweden and Israel much of the funding for formal assistance ultimately comes from the central government, //the local structures through which assistance is delivered are different in the two countries.// - thus, the functioning of the local structures might be different in a positive or negative way, which leads to the difference. Looks good. Keep.

D. In recent decades, the increase in life expectancy of someone who is 75 years old has been greater in Israel than in Sweden. - ok. But, since the premise states that the sample tested, was similar, so we cannot assume any difference in number of people of the nature of the sample. It is tempting. But, often these kind of tempting options are traps in which I have taken several times. So, thus time I won't and see what proceeds.

E. In Israel, people older than 75 tend to live with their children, whereas in Sweden people of that age tend to live alone. - irrelevant.

Thus, C is best.


Sent from my Lenovo K53a48 using GMAT Club Forum mobile app

I disagree with choice E beeing irrelevant, more people living with their childern indicates a potential for a larger degree of informal support (provided by the children due to the proximity), therefore a the potential demand for formal support could be smaller as children already take care of some of the issues which might lead Swedish elderly people to seek support!

With regards to C, as it was mentioned in the original passage that the systems in both countries are the same with regards to comprehensivness I assume that this goes both for the federal as well as for the regional level.

Hope this helps.

Best regards,
Chris
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Chris,

The answer choice (C) says that funding for formal assistance comes from central government and only the local structure is different. Hence the increase in formal assistance should increase for both sweden & Isarel. This answer choice does not say why one is better than other.
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A study compared a sample of Swedish people older than 75 who needed 09 May 2026, 01:21
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Boil it down:
Sweden and Israel have similar assistance programs.
But Formal assistance Sweden > Israel

Resolve the paradox: The paradox is if two countries have similar assistance programs, why the countries have different # of people taking Formal Assistance?

Gap: What about the informal assistance?
Maybe the Formal + informal assistance = same for both countries

Which of the following, if true, does most to explain the difference that the study found?

A. A companion study found that among children needing special in-home care, the amount of formal assistance they received was roughly the same in Sweden as in Israel – irrelevant group

B. More Swedish than Israeli people older than 75 live in rural areas where formal assistance services are sparse or nonexistent – Trap - Deepens the paradox

C. Although in both Sweden and Israel much of the funding for formal assistance ultimately comes from the central government, the local structures through which assistance is delivered are different in the two countries – Irrelevant

D. In recent decades, the increase in life expectancy of someone who is 75 years old has been greater in Israel than in Sweden – Trap – Deepens the paradox

E. In Israel, people older than 75 tend to live with their children, whereas in Sweden people of that age tend to live alone. – Correct answer – explains the difference that the study found
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