V02 - Q21

Question

Its a RC question..

Passage :

Psychologists and marketers alike are aware that product labels can trigger brand loyalty and influence customers' perceptions of quality. A recent experiment, however, goes beyond brand loyalty and suggests that expectation can alter the experience of taste itself.

In the experiment, 300 men and women tasted two versions of a beverage each, one a regular cola, and the other the same cola with a few drops of white vinegar added. A previous survey had found that most cola drinkers thought vinegar would worsen the taste. The participants were told only that one of the beverages, called "cola extra," contained an unspecified secret ingredient.

Researchers found that in a blind taste test of 100 people, 60% actually preferred the vinegar-enriched "cola extra." A second group of 100 learned after they had tasted both beverages that vinegar was the secret ingredient. This group, surprisingly, preferred "cola extra" by the same percentage. A final group was told before the taste test that one of the colas contained vinegar. In this group, only about one third of respondents favored "cola extra."

Question:
Which of the following is the best sentence with which to begin a paragraph continuing the passage above?

A. The test group responses prove there may be a market for colas blended with vinegar.
 B. The test group responses corroborate previous research with brain imaging, which had also shown that expectation can change the physical trace of neural activity.
 C. This experiment illustrates the need for further research before the impact of expectation on taste can be stated conclusively.
 D. This experiment establishes that labels indicating a "secret ingredient" will always sell more of a product.
 E. This experiment offers useful information to marketers, who may adjust brand labels to indicate changes in product formula.

The answer key says that the OA is B.

I just dont understand how it could be B. I feel it should be E.

Please advice!

sandeepnerli · Answer

Hi,

To answer this question, we can use the POE

A) The test group responses prove there may be a market for colas blended with vinegar -> this is more exaggerated
 B) The test group responses corroborate previous research with brain imaging, which had also shown that expectation can change the physical trace of neural activity -> Not sure, scan other choices
C) This experiment illustrates the need for further research before the impact of expectation on taste can be stated conclusively -> Some what promising, but not sure. Scan other choices 
D) This experiment establishes that labels indicating a "secret ingredient" will always sell more of a product -> not true
E) This experiment offers useful information to marketers, who may adjust brand labels to indicate changes in product formula -> This option is overstated

So I would look at the following statement in answering the question above

Psychologists and marketers alike are aware that product labels can trigger brand loyalty and influence customers' perceptions of quality. A recent experiment, however,  goes beyond brand loyalty and suggests that expectation can alter the experience of taste itself. 
In the experiment, 300 men and women tasted two versions of a beverage each, one a regular cola, and the other the same cola with a few drops of white vinegar added.  A previous survey had found that most cola drinkers thought vinegar would worsen the taste. The participants were told only that one of the beverages, called "cola extra," contained an unspecified secret ingredient.

This explains what happened when the experiment was conducted-
Researchers found that in a blind taste test of 100 people, 60% actually preferred the vinegar-enriched "cola extra." A second group of 100 learned after they had tasted both beverages that vinegar was the secret ingredient. This group, surprisingly, preferred "cola extra" by the same percentage. A final group was told before the taste test that one of the colas contained vinegar. In this group, only about one third of respondents favored "cola extra."

So the next possible thing to explore would be people's perception in deciding what to favour and what not to favour, hence I would go with option B, which is the next closest thing

Hope this helps.

Please correct me if I'm missing something

V02 - Q21

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