patto wrote:
Kennel club members who frequently discipline their dogs report a higher incidence of misbehavior than do members who rarely or never discipline their dogs. We can conclude from this that discipline does not improve dogs’ behavior; on the contrary, it encourages misbehavior.
The argument is flawed in that it fails to consider the possibility that
(A) dogs’ misbehavior is the cause of, rather than the result of, frequent discipline
(B) dogs learn from past experience how their owners are likely to react to misbehavior
(C) discipline does not cause misbehavior on the part of animals other than dogs
(D) kennel club members tend to be more skilled at raising dogs than are other dog owners
(E) kennel club members are more likely to use discipline than are other dog owners
The distinction is between Kennel club members who discipline their dogs vs Kennel club members who do not discipline their dogs.
Those who discipline report higher incidence of misbehaviour.
Conclusion: Discipline encourages misbehaviour.
We need to expose the flaw in this argument.
(A) dogs’ misbehavior is the cause of, rather than the result of, frequent discipline
Those who discipline are also the ones reporting higher misbehaviour. Is it possible that higher incidence of misbehaviour is what causes the owners to discipline the dog? Yes. Perhaps, the mild mannered dogs don't require disciplining and since they are mild mannered, they don't misbehave. We are not considering this aspect in our conclusion and it is certainly a flaw.
(B) dogs learn from past experience how their owners are likely to react to misbehavior
This is not a flaw in the argument. If dogs actually did learn from past experience, they would not be misbehaving after getting disciplined.
(C) discipline does not cause misbehavior on the part of animals other than dogs
Animals other than dogs are irrelevant to the argument.
(D) kennel club members tend to be more skilled at raising dogs than are other dog owners
Dog owners other than kennel club members are irrelevant to the argument.
(E) kennel club members are more likely to use discipline than are other dog owners
Again, dog owners other than kennel club members are irrelevant to the argument. The distinction is between members who discipline their dogs vs members who do not discipline their dogs. It is not between kennel club members vs other dog owners.
Answer (A)
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28 Feb 2019, 15:00
25%
(medium)
76%
(01:28)
correct 
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