A new smartphone app that encourages healthy eating by tracking daily nutrient intake has reported significant user weight loss after six months of use.
The developers claim that the app’s reminder system, which prompts users to record their meals and snacks,
is the primary reason for this weight loss success (C).
C= ConclusionMeaning the developers assume that app's reminder system is the cause for the successful weight loss. This is a causal conclusion. In evaluating the developers' argument, it would be most important to determine which of the following?
(A) Whether users of the app also engage in regular physical exercise apart from using the appYes - users of the app also engage in regular physical exercise apart from using the app. Ohh, then this regualr physical exercise could be the reason for the weight loss.
(weaken)No - users of the app DO NOT engage in regular physical exercise apart from using the app. Then it kind of strengthens the causality by saying that probably this another cause has not led to this effect.
(strengthen)(B) Whether other similar nutritional tracking apps also show similar results in terms of user weight loss
other similar nutritional tracking apps also show similar results in terms of user weight loss, then do we say that other apps have these app's reminder systems? or by stretching could we attribute the weight loss to app's reminder system which we are not even sure if it is the case in other similar nutritional tracking apps.
(C) Whether the users had tried other diet methods before using the app and had not seen similar weight loss results
Whether the users had tried other diet methods before using the app and had not seen similar weight loss results has no bearing on the conclusion. We want to evaluate whether the app's reminder system led to the weight loss success.
(D) Whether the reminders from the app are more effective at altering eating habits compared to other features of the app
Yes - the reminders from the app are more effective at altering eating habits compared to other features of the app; does altering eating habits lead to weight loss? we don't know;
No - the reminders from the app are NOT more effective at altering eating habits compared to other features of the app; possibly the other features of this app are effective at altering, but we don't know if if this is what led to the weight loss success.
(E) Whether users continue to lose weight or maintain weight loss after the initial six months of using the app
The conditions after the initial six months of using the app has no bearing on the conclusion.
Therefore, the right answer choice is A.