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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I just want to highlight the mistake that I did while solving question 2, learning from this mistake can be critical for someone else out there.

2) The primary purpose of the passage is to

A) present findings that contradict one explanation for the effects of a particular advertising practice
I picked this option in my first attempt. But after reading closely and between the lines, I found out that it can be a trap answer if not read properly.

Picking the portion of passage which clearly indicates that the findings do not contradict the above explanation completely,
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.

Hi samvit

2) The primary purpose of the passage is to

A) present findings that contradict one explanation for the effects of a particular advertising practice
Wrong: The passage is not dealing with a particular advertising practice BUT with severel ones ( i.e advertising heavily , use of color ...)

B) argue that theoretical explanations about the effects of a particular advertising practice are of limited value without empirical evidence
Wrong: same issue as A

C) discuss how and why particular advertising practices may affect consumers' perceptions
Correct:
First paragraph: 1st particular advertising practice: advertising heavily
How: According to economic signaling theory, consumers may perceive the frequency with which an unfamiliar brand is advertised as a cue that the brand is of high quality.
Why: Because large advertising expenditures represent a significant .....

Second paragraph: Another particular advertising practice: printed advertisements
How: use of color affected consumer perception of brand quality.
Why: Because consumers recognize that color advertisements are more expensive ....

D) contrast the research methods used in two different studies of a particular advertising practice
Wrong: same issue as A and B

E) explain why a finding about consumer responses to a particular advertising practice was unexpected
Wrong: same issue

Always read the questions carefully ....

Hope that helps

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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1) Which of the following best describes the purpose of the highlight sentence?
E) To offer an explanation for an observation reported by Marquardt and McGann - Marquardt and McGann observed that there was a correlation between the frequency of advertisements for a product and that product's quality. The highlighted sentence explains why this correlation exists - because high levels of investment in a product suggests confidence in the product's quality.

2) The primary purpose of the passage is to
C) discuss how and why particular advertising practices may affect consumers' perceptions - This passage details a host of different advertising practices: frequent vs infrequent advertisements; color vs black and white advertisements with respect to frequency, etc. We then receive explanations for how consumers respond in each of these scenarios.

3) Kirmani's research, as described in the passage, suggests which of the following regarding consumers' expectations about the quality of advertised products?
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. - Kirmani discovered that beyond a critical threshold, additional advertising seems to hurt perceptions of a product's quality. Kirmani also noted that this threshold seemed lower for color advertisements than print advertisements. So color and frequency both play a role in product perceptions.

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. - The last line of the passage informs us that because color ads are more expensive, the point at which color ads seem to be excessive comes sooner than it does for black and white ads.
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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. -

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

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.

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

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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I would like to understand the error in choice A in question 2 about primary purpose of the passage.

Thanks

Gmat Ninja - Can you explain why 4 E is wrong ?

Question 4

First, let's take a look at the relevant parts of the passage. Kirmani's first two studies tell us:

...at some level of spending the manufacturer's advertising effort may be perceived as unreasonably high, implying low manufacturer confidence in product quality.

And the third study tells us that in print advertisements:

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.

So, a manufacturer cannot advertise their product too often without being seen to have low confidence in their product's quality and this effect happens more quickly in colorful print advertisements than in black and white advertisements.

Question 4 asks us to find the answer choice that could be a conclusion about a black-and-white advertisement, based on Kirmani's studies.

Let's take a look at (E) to see why it is not the correct answer:

The passage tells us that consumers will perceive low manufacturer confidence in the quality of an advertised product if the advertisement is seen too regularly. Also, there is a different threshold for what too regularly means for color and black-and-white advertisements.

However, we don't have to worry about how often consumers see the advertisement in this question because we're asked about "a black-and-white advertisement" (SINGULAR), rather than black-and-white advertisements (PLURAL). A consumer can only see a single advertisement once, so we don't have to worry about them seeing it too regularly to reach the threshold where it would be seen as excessive.

Also, we aren't given any information that would help us determine whether the difference in the colorfulness of a single advertisement indicates higher or lower manufacturer confidence in a product.

Therefore, we cannot say that (E) is a conclusion about a black-and-white advertisement we can take from Kirmani's third study, so (E) is not the right answer.

Compare this to (A):

We're told in the passage that excessive advertising can indicate low manufacture confidence in their product's quality. Also, a color advertisement can be repeated fewer times than a black-and-white advertisment before it is "perceived as excessive." This is the same as saying a black-and-white advertisement can be repeated more frequently than a color advertisement before it is seen as excessive.

(A) is a rephrasing of the conclusion given for Kirmani's third study at the end of the passage -- this is why (A) is a correct conclusion about a black-and-white advertisement and why (A) is the correct answer to this question.

I hope that helps!
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I request someone to Kindly explain question 5 in detail. Thanks in advance!

Hey pranjalsethi,

For question 5, lets first try to break the question stem and understand what the question is actually asking for -



If you read the above bolded and highlighted part, you can make out that the question is asking that Kirman, a person mentioned in the passage, will agree on something about consumer's perceptions of a relation between advertisement frequency of a product and quality of the same product from the below options. So which one option can he likely agree to.

Before, we move on to the options, we should quickly just jump back to the passage to find what Kirman implies [means] on the relation between frequency and quality of the product. So we refer to the following excerpt from the passage -

If consumers perceive excessive advertising effort as a sign of a manufacturer's desperation, the result may be less favorable brand perceptions

This means that Kirman believes, if a manufacturer is EXCESSIVELY ADVERTISING, then he MIGHT NOT BE CONFIDENT in the product's quality

I have highlighted the word 'Might' here to help understand that excessive advertising does not all the time mean bad quality, but most of the times it could mean.

Now with this understanding let's look at the options -


Frequency is the primary concern ???
As per the passage, kirman at no point mentions it to be a primary consideration.
Moreover, we should be wary of such words in the options. Such words, until explicitly mentioned, are part of the wrong option choices.
Incorrect


Most consumers do not notice ???
They do notice, that is what Kirman studies say. This seems to be in a conflict with the passage.
Incorrect


Nowhere in the passage, can we see kirman mentioning different expectations of consumers as per the age of the product in the market.
Out of Scope. Incorrect


By POE, we are left with this one only, but just to understand this, lets see what does it say -
Frequency of advertisement -> Not always perceived by consumers -> indicator -> manufacturers are highly confident about their products' quality

Yes this exactly what Kirman is meaning to say. [Matches what we inferred above before moving to the options]. Correct


Similar to option (C).
Nowhere in the passage, can we see kirman mentioning different expectations of consumers as per the age of the product in the market.
Out of Scope. Incorrect
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