Statistician : A financial magazine claimed that its survey of its sub

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

This problem is difficult in part because this is an Except question. As you recall, in a Strengthen Except question the four incorrect answers strengthen the argument and the correct answer either has no effect on the argument or weakens the argument.

The statistician’s statement begins with a variation of the classic LSAT construction “Some people claim...” As discussed in Chapter Two, when this construction is used, the author almost always argues against the claim made by the people. Here, a financial magazine has claimed that a survey proves that North Americans are more concerned about personal finances than politics. The statistician attacks two elements of the survey—there was a biased question and the sampling was faulty—and concludes the magazine’s claim is questionable. Let us take a closer look at the statistician’s two premises:

1. One question was biased.
The key to understanding this claim is the phrasing of the question in the magazine: “the joy of earning money.” By describing politics neutrally but describing earning money as a fun activity, the question inappropriately suggests to the magazine reader that one activity is more interesting than the other. This bias undermines the integrity of the survey.

2. The sample was self-selecting.
A self-selecting sample is one in which individuals decide whether to participate. As you might expect, only those interested in the topic tend to participate and this creates a bias in the results. Because the survey was of subscribers to a financial magazine and not of the general North American population, those participating in sample are not necessarily representative of North Americans and thus the magazine cannot reliably draw a conclusion about North Americans.
Hence, the statistician’s position appears reasonably strong. Nonetheless, you are asked to eliminate four answers that will strengthen it further.

Earlier in this chapter we mentioned that the test makers believe in the validity of surveys, polls, etc. This question does not affect that position; in this situation the survey itself is the topic of discussion. Normally, that is not the case, and unless a survey or poll is shown to be questionable, you can typically accept the results knowing that the test makers believe survey results are valid.

Answer choice (A): This answer asserts that the magazine has credibility issues and thereby supports the conclusion that there should be skepticism regarding the magazine’s activities.

Answer choice (B): This answer attacks the integrity of magazine surveys, and therefore supports the idea that there is reason to be skeptical of this magazine survey. Frankly, this is a weak answer because the validity of surveys in other magazines do not necessarily reflect on the validity of this magazine’s survey. Nonetheless, only about five percent of test takers select this answer, as most people are able to recognize the intent of the test makers.

Answer choice (C): This answer supports the argument because other surveys suggest that North Americans are not more concerned about finances than politics. Because this counters the claim of the magazine, the answer supports the statistician’s conclusion that there is reason to be skeptical of the magazine’s survey.

Answer choice (D): Because the statistician has shown the survey to be biased and unrepresentative, this answer choice supports the statistician’s conclusion.

Answer choice (E): This is the correct answer. The answer has no impact on the statistician’s argument because a third topic—social issues—was not part of the magazines’ survey, nor does this answer suggest anything about the preference of North Americas for finance or politics. Because the answer has no impact, it is correct in a Strengthen question.