A study was designed to learn the effects of meditation on people suffering from behavioral disorders such as uncontrollable anger and extreme anxiety. The researchers gathered two groups of patients, alike in the severity of these disorders, for this study. To the first group, techniques of meditation were taught for about a week, along with regular medication. To the other group, only the regular medications were offered for a week. When the behaviors of both the groups were observed after a week, it was found that both groups continued to exhibit similar behavioral traits as before. The researchers then concluded that meditation does not improve the effectiveness of medication in any significant way.
Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the researchers’ conclusion?
(A) The improvements in behavioral patterns are difficult to judge and the methods used to observe improvement were not very comprehensive.
(B) Continual practice of meditation for about a month is required for any beginner to internalize the meditation techniques to experience an influence on chronic behavioral issues.
(C) Only some techniques of meditation can be mastered under a training program but medication does its job well upon immediate consumption.
(D) Medication is often sufficient for patients of behavioral disorders such as uncontrollable anger and extreme anxiety for overcoming these disorders.
(E) Before the experiment, the first group had little knowledge about meditation while the second group was asked to read about the general benefits of meditation.
