An economic recession can result from a lowering of employment rates t

Question

An economic recession can result from  a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

(A) a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and start a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

(B) a lowering of employment rates triggered by dropping investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

(C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.

(D) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates.

(E) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates.

If you could also suggest why "a cycle of layoffs that lead" may be right and not "a cycle of layoffs that leads" be right? Perhaps both are right.

TommyWallach · Accepted Answer

Hey All,

So apparently people wanted a Manhattan instructor to weigh in. So here I am! BTW, could people start putting the part of the sentence that's underlined in an actual underline? It's easy to do, and it makes the questions so much easier to read.

An economic recession can result from  a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

NOTE: Clearly this is some kind of modifier issue ("which causes..." "triggered by..."). Remember that noun modifiers MUST TOUCH the noun they modify. There also seems to be some parallelism issues at work (and).

A) a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending
and start a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.
PROBLEM: "Results from a lowering" is not idiomatic. "A lowering" would imply that somebody actually did the "lowering", whereas "falling" has no initiator. "Which causes" is unclear, but seems to be modifying "investment", which is incorrect (seems this way because it would say "which cause (no s)" if "rates" were the modifiee). Next, "causes" should be parallel to "starts", because it isn't "people" who "start a cycle of layoffs". Next, it's not leading "back" to even lower rates (they're even lower...we were never there before). Finally, we don't need to say "people to cut consumer spending". "Consumer spending" already implies the people.

B) a lowering of employment rates triggered by dropping investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending
and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.
PROBLEM: "A lowering" issue. "Causes" issue. "leading back" issue.

C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a
cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.
ANSWER: Lots of modifiers, but all are correct. "triggered" modifies "rates". "which cause" modifies "rates" as well. "starting" modifies the cutbacks in consumer spending (which makes logical sense...people don't spend money...businesses don't make us much...they have to lay people off).

D) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and
starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates.
PROBLEM: "lead back" issue. "people...consumer spending" issue.

E) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and
starting a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates. 
PROBLEM: Just one modifier goes wrong here. "starting a cycle of layoffs" is modifying the previous clause ("Recession can result from rates that are triggered by a drop in investment"). But it's actually the cutbacks in consumer spending that start the cycle of layoffs. Also, we need a comma before the final participle ("leading"), because it's representing the RESULT of the layoffs, rather than modifying it adjectivally (C uses a relative clause "that lead" to do this).

Hope that helps! Toughie!

-t

nusmavrik · Answer

This one nailed me today, I rarely get SC wrong. I will love if any of the Manhattan Instructors will pitch in and explain the OA to the maximum possible extent. 1. especially the use of "which" 2. I believe option C has SV disagreement since "cycle" is singular and should use "leads". People, please use your judgement not mine ! :wink:

Reopening the question. An economic recession can result from a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates . • a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and start a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates. • a lowering of employment rates triggered by dropping investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates. • falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates. • falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates. • falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates.

rashminet84 · Answer

The option C is written incorrectly

I just could not convince myself that C is the right choice, so looked up other forums. The correct ans is

c. falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.

source: https://www.manhattangmat.com/forums/an- ... t1071.html

powerka · Answer

It is neither C or E. But OA is C. See https://www.manhattangmat.com/forums/an- ... t1071.html

nusmavrik · Answer

OA is C This is very interesting thing I learnt and I will like to share. Lets say X is singular and Y plural. Imagine this pattern : X of Y, which is ------> which points to the noun before the comma. So X or Y??? In such case let GMAT be your guide. I haven't seen a foe helping! :wink:

But here it does 1. If the verb after which is singular -> which refers to X 2. If the verb after which is plural -> which refers to Y This rule overrides any rule about "which" referring to X you didn't see the preposition "of"] E.g. the box of nails, which is on the counter ---> which refers to box. I'd always say which refers to box since gmat was consistent in writing statements like this. But the truth is that the verb after "which" is singular "is" and seems to refer to X. When I saw this sentence today I ignored the hints about "which" - they were right there in the sentence ! 3:2 split leaves A,B and C as contenders. And I guess people already killed A and B Option C. "which" refers to "employment rates" because the verb "cause" is plural. So subject has to be plural. cycle of layoffs that lead ----> that refers to "layoffs" since the verb "lead" is plural. • falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.

nusmavrik · Answer

So why is E wrong? Here is the OE :-D

(D) This choice contains the wordy phrase "causing people to cut consumer spending" and the redundant phrase "lead back." Moreover, the words "causing" and "starting" illogically refer back to the economic recession. In fact, the falling employment rates, not the economic recession, cause the cutbacks in consumer spending and start the cycle of layoffs. (E) The words "causing" and "starting" illogically refer back to the economic recession. In fact, the falling employment rates, not the economic recession, cause the cutbacks in consumer spending and start the cycle of layoffs.

TGC · Answer

35. An economic recession can result from  a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

A) a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and start a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

B) a lowering of employment rates triggered by dropping investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.

D) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates.

E) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates.

Source: Brutal SC

asdfghjklasdfghj · Answer

In answer choice C we have "a cycle of layoffs that lead" Why is it correct that the verb is plural since we have "a cycle" {noun} + "of layoffs" {prep. phrase} ?

sayantanc2k · Answer

Here both singular and plural valve would be alright depending on the meaning the author wants to convey. The pronoun "that" may refer to "layoffs" or "cycle". So the verb lead / leads depends on the meaning. Here the meaning conveyed is that the layoffs lead to lower employment rates.

sashiim20 · Answer

An economic recession can result from  a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

Lowering of  -----  Incorrect form. Hence A,B are incorrect.

(A) a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and start a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

(B) a lowering of employment rates triggered by dropping investment, which cause people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.

(C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates. -----------  Correct .

(D) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates. -----------  too wordy and incorrect grammatical construction. Incorrect.

(E) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, that cause cutbacks in consumer spending and the start of a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates. ------------  too wordy and incorrect grammatical construction. Incorrect.

Answer (C)...

elegantm · Answer

An economic recession can result from  a lowering of employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which causes people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates. 
 
(A)  a lowering of  employment rates triggered by a drop in investment,  which  causes people to cut consumer spending  and start a cycle  of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.
 USE of WHICH to modify an idea presented in previous sentence is incorrect. Hence Incorrect.

(B)  a lowering of  employment rates triggered by dropping investment,  which cause  people to cut consumer spending and starts a cycle of layoffs leading back to even lower employment rates.
 USE of WHICH to modify an idea presented in previous sentence is incorrect. Use of Singular verb CAUSE is incorrect. Hence Incorrect.

(C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.
 CORRECT

(D) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment, causing people to cut consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead back to even lower employment rates.
 WORDY...

(E) falling employment rates that are triggered by a drop in investment ,  that cause cutbacks in consumer spending and the start of a cycle of layoffs leading to even lower employment rates.
 USE of COMMA before THAT is incorrect; moreover such use means that THAT is modifying INVESTMENT, an incorrect meaning. Use of Singular verb CAUSE is incorrect. Hence Incorrect.

lary301254M7 · Answer

(C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, causing cutbacks in consumer spending and starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates

C) falling employment rates triggered by a drop in investment, which cause cutbacks in consumer spending, starting a cycle of layoffs that lead to even lower employment rates.

Fix this question please. How in the world are there two option C in the post and comment section lol

XavierAlexander · Answer

This questions is deactivated as per Manhattan forums. Moderators, please change the tag and update the necessary info. https://www.manhattanprep.com/gmat/forums/an-economic-recession-can-result-from-a-lowering-t1071-15.html ]

Bunuel · Answer

_________________________
TOPIC IS LOCKED. THANK YOU.

An economic recession can result from a lowering of employment rates t

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An economic recession can result from a lowering of employment rates t

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