Last visit was: 17 Jun 2025, 23:04 It is currently 17 Jun 2025, 23:04
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
User avatar
bholakc
Joined: 09 Jun 2011
Last visit: 14 Sep 2011
Posts: 54
Own Kudos:
455
 [44]
Posts: 54
Kudos: 455
 [44]
9
Kudos
Add Kudos
35
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Most Helpful Reply
User avatar
anairamitch1804
Joined: 26 Oct 2016
Last visit: 20 Apr 2019
Posts: 506
Own Kudos:
3,523
 [8]
Given Kudos: 877
Location: United States
Concentration: Marketing, International Business
Schools: HBS '19
GMAT 1: 770 Q51 V44
GPA: 4
WE:Education (Education)
Schools: HBS '19
GMAT 1: 770 Q51 V44
Posts: 506
Kudos: 3,523
 [8]
6
Kudos
Add Kudos
2
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
User avatar
Bunuel
User avatar
Math Expert
Joined: 02 Sep 2009
Last visit: 17 Jun 2025
Posts: 102,085
Own Kudos:
733,226
 [4]
Given Kudos: 93,894
Products:
Expert
Expert reply
Active GMAT Club Expert! Tag them with @ followed by their username for a faster response.
Posts: 102,085
Kudos: 733,226
 [4]
4
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
General Discussion
avatar
hsn81960
Joined: 16 May 2018
Last visit: 15 Aug 2019
Posts: 60
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 45
Location: Hungary
Posts: 60
Kudos: 7
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I understand option D. But how do you eliminate answer choice A. Negating A : Anyone who relies on movie and electronic media is able to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen. Doesn't this weaken the argument??
User avatar
GMATNinja
User avatar
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Last visit: 17 Jun 2025
Posts: 7,331
Own Kudos:
68,263
 [2]
Given Kudos: 1,947
Status: GMAT/GRE/LSAT tutors
Location: United States (CO)
GMAT 1: 780 Q51 V46
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Products:
Expert
Expert reply
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Posts: 7,331
Kudos: 68,263
 [2]
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
mallya12
I understand option D. But how do you eliminate answer choice A. Negating A : Anyone who relies on movie and electronic media is able to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen. Doesn't this weaken the argument??
The question asks us which answer choice is "an assumption on which the columnist’s argument depends," which is different than an answer choice that, if negated, would weaken the argument. An assumption on which the argument depends MUST be true in order for the conclusion to follow logically from the evidence in the passage.

The columnist concludes that "widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy."

His/her evidence for this conclusion is as follows:
  • A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust
  • Such bonds are formed and strengthened only by participation in civic organizations, political parties, and other groups outside the family.

Take another look at (A):
Quote:
(A) Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen.
The key to eliminating this answer choice is the word "anyone."

The conclusion states that "widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy." This just means that the overall effect of widespread reliance on movies/electronic media is corrosive to democracy. The conclusion would still be valid if, say, a large majority of people who use movies/electronic media are unable to form bonds of trust, even if a small number of movie watchers/electronic media users are able to form such bonds.

The argument does not require "anyone" who relies on movies/electronic media to be unable to form a strong bond of mutual support. Because this statement does not absolutely have to be true in order for the conclusion to be logically sound, answer choice (A) is not an assumption on which the argument depends.

I hope that helps!
User avatar
David nguyen
Joined: 15 May 2017
Last visit: 18 Aug 2020
Posts: 139
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 132
Status:Discipline & Consistency always beats talent
Location: United States (CA)
GPA: 3.59
WE:Sales (Retail: E-commerce)
Posts: 139
Kudos: 135
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Quote:
I understand option D. But how do you eliminate answer choice A. Negating A : Anyone who relies on movie and electronic media is able to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen. Doesn't this weaken the argument??

A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust.
It is obvious then that widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy.

Quote:
(A) Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen
If you read this again closely, this answer choice asserts that "Unable to form a strong bond" is certain. The conclusion, however, states "inherently corrosive effect". The language of the two are subtle but (A) is to the extreme while the conclusion is to a possibility.
User avatar
uchihaitachi
Joined: 20 Aug 2017
Last visit: 06 Jul 2024
Posts: 92
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 174
Posts: 92
Kudos: 226
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
GMATNinja

What does option E mean?
People who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment are generally closer to their families than are those who do not.

People who are not relying on movies and electronic media are closer to families of not?
We only know that people do not watch movies, but can we properly infer that they are also not closer to their families?
User avatar
GMATNinja
User avatar
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Last visit: 17 Jun 2025
Posts: 7,331
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 1,947
Status: GMAT/GRE/LSAT tutors
Location: United States (CO)
GMAT 1: 780 Q51 V46
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Products:
Expert
Expert reply
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Posts: 7,331
Kudos: 68,263
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
uchihaitachi
GMATNinja

What does option E mean?
People who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment are generally closer to their families than are those who do not.

People who are not relying on movies and electronic media are closer to families of not?
We only know that people do not watch movies, but can we properly infer that they are also not closer to their families?
To make sense of (E), we should really look at it as part of the overall question. So, let's take a look at the passage first.

We're told that:
  • A democratic society needs its citizens to have established strong bonds of mutual trust for it to survive
  • These bonds are formed by participating in groups outside the family

These two points are used as evidence to support the passage's conclusion: the reliance on electronic media for entertainment has an "inherently corrosive effect on democracy."

This question asks us which of the answer choices is an assumption on which the columnist’s argument depends. If the argument depends on an assumption, then the assumption is necessary to reach the conclusion from the evidence provided. If the answer choice is correct, then it would not be possible for the conclusion to logically follow from the evidence without it.

(E) tells us:
Quote:
(E) People who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment are generally closer to their families than are those who do not.
In (E), we're comparing two groups of people: the first group rely on movies and electronic media for their entertainment, the second group entertains themselves in a different way -- we aren't told what that different way is.

Also, there is some amount of closeness that everyone feels towards their own family. People in the first group will have a higher level of closeness to their own family than the level of closeness felt towards their own family by people in the second group.

We're looking for an assumption required to conclude that electronic media has an "inherently corrosive effect on democracy," because it prevents bonds being formed by people participating in groups outside their family. Knowing about the strength of the bond between family members is not an assumption that's required for this argument. This is why (E) is not the correct answer to this question.

Compare this to (D):
Quote:
(D) Relying on movies and electronic media for entertainment generally makes people less likely to participate in groups outside their families.
The columnist says people participating in groups outside their families is necessary for democracy to survive. This participation develops the "strong bonds of mutual trust" required to maintain a democracy.

If relying on movies and electronic media had no effect on whether people participate in groups outside their families then the reliance on this media for entertainment would not have a corrosive effect on democracy. If (D) is true then people who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment will be less likely to participate in groups outside their families. This means they will be less likely to develop the "strong bonds of mutual trust" required to maintain a democracy, and the passage's conclusion follows from the evidence.

(D) is necessary for this argument to be effective, so (D) is the answer to this question.

I hope that helps!
User avatar
Gylmitul
Joined: 03 Mar 2020
Last visit: 07 Apr 2021
Posts: 32
Own Kudos:
10
 [2]
Given Kudos: 125
Location: India
Schools: ISB'22 (A)
GMAT 1: 710 Q49 V39
Schools: ISB'22 (A)
GMAT 1: 710 Q49 V39
Posts: 32
Kudos: 10
 [2]
2
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Hi, I think your reasoning is wrong, although the answer is correct.

"Anyone" is not the key word here. Anyone infact means 100% here, it is more like out of a group of 100 people, you can choose anyone, and the assumption, i.e., they will not be able to form a bond with any citizen because of movies, will still hold true.

I think the contentious word here is "Citizen" instead.

Please find my reasoning below:-

Conclusion: Reliance on movies is detrimental to democracy
Premise: Participation in democratic institutions to develop trust with people outside of "family" is imp for democracy
Gap: Causal relationship between how movies are inhibiting participation in democratic institutions, and in turn, trust development with people outside of "family"

Answer Choice A: Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen
Negated Answer Choice A: Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is able to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen - [color=#ffff00]"citizen" here could be 1 -> "family" or 2 ->"people outside family" [/color]
If 1. - [color=#ff0000]conclusion still holds true
If 2. - conclusion breaks[/color]

Since, this is an assumption, this must break the conclusion when it is true.


GMATNinja
mallya12
I understand option D. But how do you eliminate answer choice A. Negating A : Anyone who relies on movie and electronic media is able to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen. Doesn't this weaken the argument??
The question asks us which answer choice is "an assumption on which the columnist’s argument depends," which is different than an answer choice that, if negated, would weaken the argument. An assumption on which the argument depends MUST be true in order for the conclusion to follow logically from the evidence in the passage.

The columnist concludes that "widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy."

His/her evidence for this conclusion is as follows:
  • A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust
  • Such bonds are formed and strengthened only by participation in civic organizations, political parties, and other groups outside the family.

Take another look at (A):
Quote:
(A) Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen.
The key to eliminating this answer choice is the word "anyone."

The conclusion states that "widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy." This just means that the overall effect of widespread reliance on movies/electronic media is corrosive to democracy. The conclusion would still be valid if, say, a large majority of people who use movies/electronic media are unable to form bonds of trust, even if a small number of movie watchers/electronic media users are able to form such bonds.

The argument does not require "anyone" who relies on movies/electronic media to be unable to form a strong bond of mutual support. Because this statement does not absolutely have to be true in order for the conclusion to be logically sound, answer choice (A) is not an assumption on which the argument depends.

I hope that helps!
User avatar
kavitaverma
Joined: 26 May 2022
Last visit: 17 May 2024
Posts: 28
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 174
Location: India
Concentration: Technology, Other
GMAT 1: 730 Q50 V40
GMAT 1: 730 Q50 V40
Posts: 28
Kudos: 30
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
bholakc
Columnist: A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust. Such bonds are formed and strengthened only by participation in civic organizations, political parties, and other groups outside the family. It is obvious then that widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy.

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the columnist’s argument depends?


(A) Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen.

(B) Civic organizations cannot usefully advance their goals by using electronic media.

(C) Newspapers and other forms of print media strengthen, rather than weaken, democratic institutions.

(D) Relying on movies and electronic media for entertainment generally makes people less likely to participate in groups outside their families.

(E) People who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment are generally closer to their families than are those who do not.


1. A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust.
So they need bonds of mutual trust. But that is the necessary condition, not the only one. It is possible that they form bonds but still democratic society does not exist for some other reason.
2. Such bonds are formed and strengthened only by participation in civic organizations, political parties, and other groups outside the family.
This is the only condition to form such bonds. So participation is necessary. That is why the correct answer must contain this condition.

Please feel free to correct if I am missing something.
User avatar
unraveled
Joined: 07 Mar 2019
Last visit: 10 Apr 2025
Posts: 2,727
Own Kudos:
Given Kudos: 764
Location: India
WE:Sales (Energy)
Posts: 2,727
Kudos: 2,143
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Columnist: A democratic society cannot exist unless its citizens have established strong bonds of mutual trust. Such bonds are formed and strengthened only by participation in civic organizations, political parties, and other groups outside the family. It is obvious then that widespread reliance on movies and electronic media for entertainment has an inherently corrosive effect on democracy.

Which one of the following is an assumption on which the columnist’s argument depends?

(A) Anyone who relies on movies and electronic media for entertainment is unable to form a strong bond of mutual trust with a citizen. - WRONG. Only thing wrong about this is that it's on extreme side i.e. 'anyone'. Otherwise, if negated it destroys the conclusion.

(B) Civic organizations cannot usefully advance their goals by using electronic media. - WRONG. Not inferable forget about it being an assumption.

(C) Newspapers and other forms of print media strengthen, rather than weaken, democratic institutions. - WRONG. Irrelevant.

(D) Relying on movies and electronic media for entertainment generally makes people less likely to participate in groups outside their families. - CORRECT. Catches the desired aspect that leads to the conclusion.

(E) People who rely on movies and electronic media for entertainment are generally closer to their families than are those who do not. - WRONG. Two things are wrong with this - close to family and a comparison on that front. Both are not ascertainable.

Answer D.
User avatar
VerbalBot
User avatar
Non-Human User
Joined: 01 Oct 2013
Last visit: 04 Jan 2021
Posts: 18,401
Own Kudos:
Posts: 18,401
Kudos: 946
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.
Moderators:
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
7331 posts
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
235 posts