A recent study found out that 60% of middle school boys who played at

Question

A recent study found out that 60% of middle school boys who played at least one violent video game hit or beat up someone, compared to 39% of boys who did not play such games. Some researchers argue that  these games desensitize players to violence, reward players for simulating violence, and teach children that violence is an acceptable way to resolve conflicts . However, the statistics do not warrant the cause and effect relationship argued by the researchers.  It is possible that violent youth are drawn to violent video games.
 
In the above argument, the two boldface portions play which of the following roles?

A. The first provides an explanation that supports the position taken by the argument; the second is that position.

B. The first is a conclusion that is accepted by the argument as valid; the second is an opinion that is used to support the position that the argument as a whole seeks to establish.

C. The first provides an explanation for an observed fact; the second creates doubts about the applicability of the explanation to the observed fact.

D. The first states the position that the argument opposes; the second states the conclusion of the argument.

E. The first is a fact whose validity is questioned by the author; the second is an opinion that forms a basis for the main conclusion of the argument.

Bunuel · Answer

Please make necessary parts bold. Thank you.

yashikaaggarwal · Answer

Observation : A recent study found out that 60% of middle school boys who played at least one violent video game hit or beat up someone, compared to 39% of boys who did not play such games.

Findings : these games desensitize players to violence, reward players for simulating violence, and teach children that violence is an acceptable way to resolve conflicts.

The Other Possible Conclusion : It is possible that violent youth are drawn to violent video games..

There is a contradiction among two findings. 
 1. The first statement is showing that the violent video games are creating negative effect on children.

2. Second is concluding that the violent children might get attracted to violent games.

Only C option is justifying both;

C. The first provides an explanation for an observed fact; the second creates doubts about the applicability of the explanation to the observed fact.

IMO C

Posted from my mobile device

tanya0630 · Answer

Hi,

Please help me in understanding why c is the right choice.

CrackverbalGMAT · Answer

Pre-thinking:

The stimulus argues that it is not necessarily violent video games that cause children to be violent - it is possible that children who are already more likely to resort to violence are attracted to these violent video games.

Additionally, we can observe that the first bold face (BF1) is against the argument of the stimulus, and the second bold face (BF2) is supportive of the argument being made by the stimulus. Therefore, BF1 and BF2 are opposed to each other.

With the above in mind, let us examine what each option says about BF1:

A. The first provides an explanation that supports the position taken by the argument;  This is incorrect, the first opposes the argument. Eliminate.

B. The first is a conclusion that is accepted by the argument as valid;  This is incorrect, the first opposes the argument. Eliminate.

C. The first provides an explanation for an observed fact;  This is correct. Retain this option for now.

D. The first states the position that the argument opposes;  This is correct. Retain this option for now.

E. The first is a fact whose validity is questioned by the author;  This is incorrect. BF1 is not a fact but only an opinion/theory as evidenced by the prefix "Some researchers argue that...". Eliminate

Let us examine what each  remaining  option says about BF2:

C. the second creates doubts about the applicability of the explanation to the observed fact.  This is correct and hence the correct answer option.

D. the second states the conclusion of the argument.  This is not correct. BF2 only supports the argument and is not the conclusion. Eliminate.

Hope this helps.

joseph345 · Answer

About option D, how is the BF2 not a conclusion of the author? 
Where is the conclusion...?

coolioqwerty · Answer

why is the second bold face not a conclusion? it directly is directly an opposing conclusion

Shane04 · Answer

D. the second states the conclusion of the argument.  This is not correct. BF2 only supports the argument and is not the conclusion. Eliminate.

Can you explain how boldface 2 is not the conclusion of the argument? I was stuck between answer choices C and D and opted for D purely because it said the second boldface is the conclusion. Also if it is not the conclusion then what is?

Tea12 · Answer

The conclusion is " However, the statistics do not warrant the cause and effect relationship argued by the researchers.". BF 2 in choice D is supporting this conclusion.

Rohan271 · Answer

Is bold statement 1 a finding because "some researchers argue" is not included in the bold? I felt that bold statement 1 is an opinion. Can someone clarify this?

AbhishekP220108 · Answer

Rohan271 , let me try to explain.

Looking at the argument, we see that line 1- " A recent study found out that 60% of middle school boys who played at least one violent video game hit or beat up someone, compared to 39% of boys who did not play such games." is a fact/premise given by the Author.

Line 2 " Some researchers argue that  these games desensitize players to violence, reward players for simulating violence, and teach children that violence is an acceptable way to resolve conflicts ." which is basically an explanation given by the researchers about the observation. It is basically a cause and effect. According to researchers, violent gaming causes violent behavior. And your doubt that "some researchers argue" is not in bold, doesn't change the role of Line 2. We have to look at the bold-faced statement in relation to the argument, not separately.

Line 3 " However, the statistics do not warrant the cause-and-effect relationship argued by the researchers." An opinion or conclusion by the author.  
 And with line 4, "  It is possible that violent youth are drawn to violent video games,"  he supports his conclusion.

With this working of the role and function of both BF1 and BF2, option C perfectly matches.

Hope this helps

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