Recent research has indicated that married people are not only happier

Question

Recent research has indicated that married people are not only happier than unmarried people, but also healthier. This study has been widely reported by the media, with most commentators concluding that being married is good for one’s health and attitude.

The conclusion of the media commentators depends on which of the following assumptions?

(A) The longer people are married, the happier and healthier they become.
(B) Married couples who had a large, extravagant wedding are happier than those who had a small, simple ceremony
(C) Married people cannot get depressed.
(D) Single people with depression or health problems are just as likely to get married as are other single people.
(E) Some marriages are more harmonious than others.

atey2010 · Accepted Answer

My approach to CR question is first to determine the flaw in the argument (if the stimulus is an argument as oppose to statement of fact). Especially with an assumption question, the argument is most likely to be flaw. For instance, in this question, the flaw is correlation an causation. The commentator claims that just because there is a correlation between marriage and happiness + health benefits, you can conclude that marriage is good for your health and mental attitude.

As for me, I was down between C and D as well.

Answer choice D is correct because address this flaw in a very sneaky way. Choice D address this correlation and causation issue by eliminating the possibility that depression and health issue is actually causing people to NOT get married by saying that 
" Single people with depression or health problems are just as likely to get married as are other single people."

If we negate answer choice D, then we'll see that the conclusion above does not hold. If we negate choice D, we'll get "Single people with depression or health problems are NOT AS LIKELY to get married as are other single people." This show that there are actually a reverse correlation between marriage and depression.

Answer choice C: is incorrect because as stated earlier, if we negate C. The conclusion still holds. This example might help for those of us who still think C is correct. What if I say that running 10 mile is a good for your cardio and fat loss, and some body (answer choice C) argues that runners cannot get fat, would this weakened my argument above. This is very similar to answer C on the question, just because you get married that doesn't mean that you will never be depressed. You might be happily marry for en year and then one day you found out that your husband or wife had an affair with your best friend. Furthermore, both of your parents are suffering from brain tumor. Any reasonable person would be depressed.

walker · Answer

I thinks that it is D.

In order to make such conclusion the author has to assume that "marriage" is a cause of "be happier and healthier" but not a sequence. People with depression or health problems might be reluctant to get marriage. If so, "marriage" is a effect.

Bunuel · Answer

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

Research indicates that there is a connection between being married and being happy and healthy. Media commentators have concluded that marriage causes happiness and health. However, one could reasonably conclude from the research that the cause and effect are the reverse: being happy and healthy makes a person more likely to get married.

(A) The research compared married people to unmarried people. Neither the researchers nor the media commentators made any distinction between newlyweds and those who had been married a long time, so this assumption is not necessary.

(B) The type of wedding is outside the scope of this argument. The research compared married people to unmarried people, but made no distinction based upon the type of wedding. Thus, this assumption is unnecessary.

(C) At first, this statement may seem necessary—after all, if the commentators conclude that marriage causes happiness, a lack of depression in married people would certainly support that conclusion. However, the statement is too extreme. One depressed married person does not invalidate the research indicating that, on average, married people are healthier and happier than non-married people.

(D) CORRECT.  This statement eliminates the alternative interpretation of the research findings—that being happy and healthy makes a person more likely to get married.

(E) The research compared married people to unmarried people. Neither the researchers nor the media commentators made any distinction between harmonious marriages and combative marriages, so this assumption is not necessary.

bkk145 · Answer

D

The argument assumes that getting married improved one's health. However, if single people with depression don't marry because of depression itself, then this suggests that depression itself is the actual cause of single people not getting marry.

FN · Answer

on 2nd pass D does look good too..

so debating between C and D...

if C is not true would the argument hold? yeah..it still does..argument doesnt say anything about long term affects of marriage..maybe later they get depressed who knows..

D says everyone has an equal oppurtunity to get married and be happy..if this werent true i think the argument falls apart..

D it is..

fall2009 · Answer

D.
If only happy and healthy single people get married, then the marriage doesn't make them to be happy and healthy. In fact, they have happy marriage because they are happy people.

atey2010 · Answer

Thanks pranrasvij & nusmavrik. If you have any more questions, shoot me a message. I'm pretty solid on CR and RC. But I still have some problems with the grammar part esp. the idioms stuff. I argue that the American idiom grammar section is unfair to us ESL students. Anyhow, as for CR strategy, I would recommend to approach the question upfront, meaning that we should first see if the argument is a good argument or a flaw argument or if this is just a statement of fact (this usually applies to inference question). If its an argument, it is most likely flaw since we can't really strengthen or weakened a good argument. Therefore, you should identify a flaw in the argument first and then approach the question. Almost always the answer choice that is correct will address this flaw. Keep in mind that there might be more than one flaw. But the question will definitely address that flaw inorder to strengthen or weakened the argument. Just like this marriage CR question, if we see correlation & causation flaw then we could narrow down to the correct answer choice D. I don't know why, but the GMAT test prep books that I read so far do not explicitly address this topic.

I found this to be helpful especially if English is not your native language, since this technique help you solve CR question much faster and a lot more accurate. So you can save up time to deal with dense RC passage or very annoying and tricky American Idioms SC.

Ok I will stop. Thanks for reading.

I found this to be helpful especially if English is not your native language, since this technique help you solve CR question much faster and a lot more accurate. So you can save up time to deal with dense RC passage or very annoying and tricky American Idioms SC.

Ok I will stop. Thanks for reading.

GloriousResolve · Answer

The author cites a correlation between marriage and conditions like happiness and health , and concludes that marriage leads to happiness and health. Hence he’s assuming that the causation doesn’t run the other way.

mysterio · Answer

marriage -> being healthy. Option D prevent the reversal of this cause effect. IF single people with depression are not likely to get married as other single people then unmarried people would consist of this depressed one's having poorer health from before, rather than this condition occurring due to being unmarried.

GMATD11 · Answer

Negation of answer choice:::
Single people with depression or health problems are  not  just as likely to get married as are other single people. 
Upon negation Conclusion falls 
If only happy single people get married then we cant say being married is good for health & attitude.But if Depressed single people as likely to get married as single happy people we can conclude that being married is good for health & attitude.

OldFritz · Answer

Unwaveringly D. Broken down, D says that marriage is not undertaken only by healthy and non-depressed people but that sad and sickly souls are as likely to get hitched as their jolly contemporaries. Therefore marriage is not dominated by already pre-marriage happy people, but rather it is the institution of marriage which bestows healthy and cheery dispositions to those who enter it. This assumption effectively rules out a consideration that opposes the argument that marriage brings happiness and health.

Cheers.

Posted from my mobile device

Cheers.

Posted from my mobile device

abhishekdadarwal2009 · Answer

The conclusion of the media commentators depends on which of the following assumptions?

(A) The longer people are married, the happier and healthier they become.
 may not be true as its not specified in the argument. 
(B) Married couples who had a large, extravagant wedding are happier than those who had a small, simple 
 no such comaparison presented in the argument. 
(C) Married people cannot get depressed.
 the statement is bold and does not have any premise backing the claim, 
(D) Single people with depression or health problems are just as likely to get married as are other single people.
This choice suggest that not only the healthy and happy people get married but depressed and unhealth people also get married.
 This choice actually canceles out the posibility to attack the argument that would be that only happy and healthy people get married so marrige is not responsible for the prosperity in one's life.but this choice clears that option and thus the correct assumption 
(E) Some marriages are more harmonious than others.
 no such comparison seen in the argument and also this may be correct but not required for the current structure of the argument.

anairamitch1804 · Answer

Conclusion: MARRIAGE causes GOOD HEALTH.

The assumption is WHAT MUST BE TRUE for this conclusion to be valid. 
Apply the NEGATION TEST. 
When the correct answer choice is negated, the conclusion will be invalidated. Choice D, negated: 
Single people with health problems are LESS LIKELY TO GET MARRIED than are other single people. 
Implication: 
ONLY HEALTHY PEOPLE are likely to get married. 
The negation of D invalidates the conclusion: if most married people were healthy BEFORE they got married, the argument cannot conclude that marriage causes good health. 
Since the negation of D invalidates the conclusion, D is the correct ASSUMPTION: what must be true for the conclusion to be valid.

The correct answer is D.

VerbalBot · Answer

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Recent research has indicated that married people are not only happier

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