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1) Which of the following best describes the purpose of the highlight sentence?
A) To Show that economic signaling theory fails to explain a finding
B) To introduce a distinction not accounted for by economic signaling theory
C) To account for an exception to a generalization suggested by Marquardt and McGann
D) To explain why Marquardt and McGann's research was conducted
E) To offer an explanation for an observation reported by Marquardt and McGann

From the lines - "Marquardt and McGann found that heavily advertised products did indeed rank high on certain measures of product quality. Because"
we know that the highlighted portion explains the observation by M&M.
IMO, E should be the answer.


2) The primary purpose of the passage is to
A) present findings that contradict one explanation for the effects of a particular advertising practice
<this is done only in the second paragraph, not a primary purpose of the passage as a whole - incorrect >

B) argue that theoretical explanations about the effects of a particular advertising practice are of limited value without empirical evidence
<it has nowhere mentioned or implied - incorrect >

C) discuss how and why particular advertising practices may affect consumers' perceptions
<seems correct >

D) contrast the research methods used in two different studies of a particular advertising practice
<research methods are nowhere contrasted - out of scope - incorrect >

E) explain why a finding about consumer responses to a particular advertising practice was unexpected
<passage presents different findings by few researchers ; there are more than one practices - incorrect >


3) Kirmani's research, as described in the passage, suggests which of the following regarding consumers' expectations about the quality of advertised products?
A) Those expectations are likely to be highest if a manufacturer runs both black-and-white and color advertisements for the same product.
<highest - out of scope - incorrect >

B) Those expectations can be shaped by the presence of color in an advertisement as well as by the frequency with which an advertisement appears.
<Seems correct with reference to the lines "advertising effort may be perceived as unreasonably high, implying low manufacturer confidence in product quality. If consumers perceive excessive advertising effort as a sign of a manufacturer's desperation, the result may be less favorable brand perceptions" >

C) Those expectations are usually high for frequently advertised new brands but not for frequently advertised familiar brands.
<no such comparison has been made - incorrect >

D) Those expectations are likely to be higher for products whose black-and-white advertisements are often repeated than for those whose color advertisements are less often repeated.
<wrong comparison - incorrect >

E) Those expectations are less definitively shaped by the manufacturer's advertisements than by information that consumers gather from other sources.
<polar opposite - "other sources" - out of scope - incorrect>

4) Kirmani's third study, as described in the passage, suggests which of the following conclusions about a black-and-white advertisement?
A) It can be repeated more frequently than a comparable color advertisement could before consumers begin to suspect low manufacturer confidence in the quality of the advertised product.
<Seems correct by referring the lines mentioned in the last paragraph - correct>

B) It will have the greatest impact on consumers' perceptions of the quality of the advertised product if it appears during periods when a color version of the same advertisement is also being used.
<"greatest impact" nowhere mentioned - incorrect >

C) It will attract more attention from readers of the print publication in which it appears if it is used only a few times.
<out of scope - "more attention from specific readers" -incorrect >

D) It may be perceived by some consumers as more expensive than a comparable color advertisement.
<wrong comparison - incorrect >

E) It is likely to be perceived by consumers as a sign of higher manufacturer confidence in the quality of the advertised product than a comparable color advertisement would be.
<frequency is the key differentiation not simply the color or B&W print - incorrect >

5) The passage suggests that Kirmani would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about consumers' perceptions of the relationship between the frequency with which a product is advertised and the product's quality?
A) Consumers' perceptions about the frequency with which an advertisement appears are their primary consideration when evaluating an advertisement's claims about product quality.
<"primary consideration" - out of scope - incorrect >

B) Because most consumers do not notice the frequency of advertisement, it has little impact on most consumers' expectations regarding product quality.
<out of scope - incorrect >

C) Consumers perceive frequency of advertisement as a signal about product quality only when the advertisement is for a product that is newly on the market.
<"new product" - out of scope - incorrect >

D) The frequency of advertisement is not always perceived by consumers to indicate that manufacturers are highly confident about their products' quality.
<Correct summary of the the combination of the two theories - correct >

E) Consumers who try a new product that has been frequently advertised are likely to perceive the advertisement's frequency as having been an accurate indicator of the product's quality.
<as per the passage - advertisement too often is negatively perceived, hence incorrect >

Please let me know your views where you think I have missed the point.
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Hi AnubhavK,

5) The passage suggests that Kirmani would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about consumers' perceptions of the relationship between the frequency with which a product is advertised and the product's quality?

Signaling Theory: frequency of ads and product's quality are positively correlated
Kirmani's finding: Beyond a certain threshold, consumers find ads to be excessive and thus think less of a product's quality.

A) Consumers' perceptions about the frequency with which an advertisement appears are their primary consideration when evaluating an advertisement's claims about product quality. - Incorrect - nowhere in passage it has been mentioned that frequency of advertisement is a primary consideration
B) Because most consumers do not notice the frequency of advertisement, it has little impact on most consumers' expectations regarding product quality. - Incorrect - the passage does not mention whether most consumers notice the frequency of advertisement or not
C) Consumers perceive frequency of advertisement as a signal about product quality only when the advertisement is for a product that is newly on the market. - Incorrect
D) The frequency of advertisement is not always perceived by consumers to indicate that manufacturers are highly confident about their products' quality. - Correct
E) Consumers who try a new product that has been frequently advertised are likely to perceive the advertisement's frequency as having been an accurate indicator of the product's quality. - Incorrect - this goes against Kirmani's findings

Answer D

Hope this helps!!
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P1 - frequently advertised brand means good one. but it is actually a bit better so that cost invested on ads can be obtained.
P2 - 3 studies by K for factors affect consumers.

1) Which of the following best describes the purpose of the highlight sentence?
PT - these lines are explaining prior sentence.
E) To offer an explanation for an observation reported by Marquardt and McGann -

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2) The primary purpose of the passage is to
A) present findings that contradict one explanation for the effects of a particular advertising practice - no
B) argue that theoretical explanations about the effects of a particular advertising practice are of limited value without empirical evidence - no
C) discuss how and why particular advertising practices may affect consumers' perceptions - seems like best choice covering whole thing.
D) contrast the research methods used in two different studies of a particular advertising practice - no
E) explain why a finding about consumer responses to a particular advertising practice was unexpected - no;

-------------------------------------------

3) Kirmani's research, as described in the passage, suggests which of the following regarding consumers' expectations about the quality of advertised products?'

the point at which repetition of an advertisement is perceived as excessive comes sooner for a color advertisement than for a black-and-white advertisement.

B) Those expectations can be shaped by the presence of color in an advertisement as well as by the frequency with which an advertisement appears. -

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4) Kirmani's third study, as described in the passage, suggests which of the following conclusions about a black-and-white advertisement?

a third study by Kirmani, of print advertisements, found that the use of color affected consumer perception of brand quality. Because consumers recognize that color advertisements are more expensive than black and white, the point at which repetition of an advertisement is perceived as excessive comes sooner for a color advertisement than for a black-and-white advertisement.


A) It can be repeated more frequently than a comparable color advertisement could before consumers begin to suspect low manufacturer confidence in the quality of the advertised product.

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5) The passage suggests that Kirmani would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements about consumers' perceptions of the relationship between the frequency with which a product is advertised and the product's quality?

However, two studies by Kirmani have found that although consumers initially perceive expensive advertising as a signal of high brand quality, at some level of spending the manufacturer's advertising effort may be perceived as unreasonably high, implying low manufacturer confidence in product quality.

D) The frequency of advertisement is not always perceived by consumers to indicate that manufacturers are highly confident about their products' quality.
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Question 2 asks us to find the primary purpose of the passage. Let's take a look the answer choice in question:

To understand this answer choice, try to map each component of the statement to the most relevant piece of the passage:

• "[The primary purpose of the passage is to] present findings that contradict one explanation": In the second paragraph, the author does present findings that contradict information presented in the first paragraph. The "explanation" that is contradicted is economic signaling theory. OK so far.
• "for the effects of a particular advertising practice": Here is where we run into a problem. What is this "particular advertising practice"? The author mentions several practices (excessive advertising effort, black and white vs. color printed advertisements, etc). Which is the specific practice referred to by this answer choice?

The author's primary purpose is not to contradict an explanation for one particular advertising practice, so (A) is not the correct answer for question 2.

Compare that to answer choice (C):

This answer choice accurately captures the primary purpose of the passage. In the first paragraph, the author introduces economic signaling theory to explain how consumers may perceive different levels of advertising by a brand. In the second paragraph, the author discusses how consumers actually perceive brands that use particular advertising practices, which does not always align with the results predicted by economic signaling theory. (C) is the right answer for question 2.

I hope that helps!
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